Meaning

noun the act of refusing to comply (as with a request)

noun the act of asserting that something alleged is not true

noun (psychiatry) a defense mechanism that denies painful thoughts

originEtymology tree English deny Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al English -al English denial From deny + -al.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0