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📕 rednote ID(小红书号)：3881567312

Reject: Definition, Usage & Examples Explained (3 meaning)

Meaning 1：refuse or decline (reject)

reject 🔊

/rɪˈdʒekt/

vt.

to say no to something you don't want or agree with.

Reject definition illustrated by hands pushing away a document marked with a red X.

refuse or decline 🔊

➕

ri-FYOOZ or di-KLINE

vt.

To indicate unwillingness to accept or agree to something that is offered, proposed, or requested.

📁 Category：Behaviors & Actions 🔖 Level：初级

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'reiectus', past participle of 'reicere', meaning 'to throw back', derived from 're-' (back) and 'iacere' (to throw).

💡 Mnemonic

Think of REJECT as RE-fuse to ac-JECT: you throw back an offer or person, just like the Latin roots imply.

📖 Example

The company decided to reject the business proposal because the costs were too high. 🔊 The company declined the business proposal due to excessively high expenses.

🔗 Collocations

reject an offer – to refuse a proposal or opportunity

reject a suggestion – to say no to an idea or advice

🔄 Synonyms

refuse (vt.) – to show unwillingness to accept or do something

decline (vt.) – to politely or formally refuse something

🚫 Antonyms

accept (vt.) – to receive or agree to something offered

🌱 Derivatives

rejection (n.) – the act or instance of rejecting

📖 Cultural Story

The word 'reject' stems from Latin 'reiectus', literally 'thrown back', reflecting the act of refusal. In modern English, it is frequently used in formal contexts such as business decisions, where proposals or applications are rejected based on criteria like cost or suitability, highlighting its role in structured evaluation processes.

Meaning 2：exclude or shun (reject)

reject 🔊

/rɪˈdʒekt/

vt.

to not accept someone into a group or community.

Concept of social rejection showing a person excluded from a group in a park.

exclude or shun 🔊

➕

ek-SKLOOD or SHUHN

vt.

To not accept or welcome someone into a social group, community, or activity, often leading to feelings of isolation.

📁 Category：Social Roles 🔖 Level：初级

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

When he first moved to the new school, he felt rejected by his classmates who already had their own friend groups. 🔊 Upon transferring to the new school, he experienced exclusion from classmates who had established friendships.

🔗 Collocations

reject someone – to not accept a person into a group or relationship

feel rejected – to experience the emotion of being excluded or unwelcome

🔄 Synonyms

exclude (vt.) – to prevent someone from joining or participating

ostracize (vt.) – to exclude from a society or group by general consent

🚫 Antonyms

accept (vt.) – to welcome someone into a group or community

include (vt.) – to make someone part of a group or activity

🌱 Derivatives

rejection (n.) – the state or feeling of being rejected socially

Meaning 3：refuse biologically (reject)

reject 🔊

/rɪˈdʒekt/

vt.

when a body refuses a transplanted organ or tissue.

Medical diagram of organ rejection with immune system attacking a heart transplant.

refuse biologically 🔊

➕

ri-FYOOZ bye-oh-LOJ-i-klee

vt.

When an organism's immune system identifies and attacks a transplanted organ or tissue as foreign, preventing its integration.

📁 Category：Physical & Mental Health 🔖 Level：中级

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

Doctors are monitoring the patient closely to ensure his body does not reject the new heart. 🔊 Medical professionals are observing the patient to prevent his immune system from refusing the transplanted heart.

🔗 Collocations

reject a transplant – when the body refuses an implanted organ or tissue

organ rejection – the immune response against a transplanted organ

🔄 Synonyms

refuse (vt.) – in a medical context, to not accept a foreign tissue or implant

🚫 Antonyms

accept (vt.) – in transplantation, when the body integrates the new organ without immune attack

🌱 Derivatives

rejection (n.) – the immune-mediated refusal of a transplant