Renege
verb ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 the mistake of not following suit when able to do so wordnet
- 1 To break a promise or commitment; to go back on one's word. intransitive
"Previously I promised not to proselytize miserism, but now I want to renege a little on that promise. If your family income is anywhere near average, you can scrimp and save and cut back for maybe two to four years […]"
- 2 fail to fulfill a promise or obligation wordnet
- 3 To break one's commitment to follow suit when capable. intransitive
- 4 To deny; to renounce archaic, transitive
"His captaines heart, / Which in the ſcuffles of great fights hath burſt / The Buckles on his breaſt, reneages all temper, / And is become the bellowes and the Fan / To coole a Gypſies Luſt."
Antonyms
All antonymsExample
More examples"Previously I promised not to proselytize miserism, but now I want to renege a little on that promise. If your family income is anywhere near average, you can scrimp and save and cut back for maybe two to four years […]"
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin renegō, from negō (“I deny”). Possibly influenced by renegotiate. Doublet of renay. See also renegade.
Related phrases
More for "renege"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.