What does "revoke" mean?
The act of revoking in a game of cards.
Revoke
/ɹɪˈvoʊk/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The act of revoking in a game of cards.
- Grammar: revoke is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: annul, rescind, abjure, abolish.
- Useful contrasts: accredited, capacitated, chartered company rule.
- Usage evidence: We don't think they have the ability to revoke your privileges.
How to use "revoke"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "revoke" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "revoke" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "revoke" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "revoke" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "revoke" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "annul" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "revoke", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The act of revoking in a game of cards.
"Employ two revokes, two trumpings of your partner's best card and two ignorings of a call — all in the same hand!"
- 2 the mistake of not following suit when able to do so wordnet
- 3 A renege; a violation of important rules regarding the play of tricks in trick-taking card games serious enough to render the round invalid.
- 4 A violation ranked in seriousness somewhat below overt cheating, with the status of a more minor offense only because, when it happens, it is usually accidental.
Verb
- 1 To cancel or invalidate by withdrawing or reversing. transitive
"Your driver's license will be revoked."
- 2 cancel officially wordnet
- 3 To fail to follow suit in a game of cards when holding a card in that suit. intransitive
"They had just sat down at the bridge table, and Mrs Lackersteen had just revoked out of pure nervousness, when there was a heavy thump on the roof."
- 4 fail to follow suit when able and required to do so wordnet
- 5 To call or bring back. obsolete
"So well he did his busie paines apply, That the faint sprite he did reuoke againe, To her fraile mansion of mortality."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 To hold back. obsolete
"Yet she with pitthy words and counsell sad, Still stroue their stubborne rages to reuoke,"
- 7 To move (something) back or away. obsolete
"A flaming fire, ymixt with smouldry smoke, And stinking Sulphure, that with griesly hate And dreadfull horror did all entraunce choke, Enforced them their forward footing to reuoke."
- 8 To call back to mind. obsolete
"late 1600s-early 1700s, Robert South, Sermon on Proverbs 18.14 in Sermons Preached on Several Occasions, Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1823, p. 132, A man, by revoking and recollecting within himself former passages, will be still apt to inculcate these sad memoirs to his conscience."
Antonyms
Example
"We don't think they have the ability to revoke your privileges."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "revoke"?
Common synonyms include: annul, rescind, abjure, abolish, abolishes, abolition.
How do you use "revoke" in a sentence?
We don't think they have the ability to revoke your privileges.
How do you pronounce "revoke"?
Pronounced /ɹɪˈvoʊk/.
Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French révoquer, from Latin revocare, from re- + voco, vocare. Doublet of revocate.