Gainsay

Definition: Gainsay

Gainsay

Verb

1. Take exception to; "She challenged his claims".

Date "gainsay" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references)

Synonyms: Gainsay

Synonyms: challenge (v), dispute (v). (additional references)

Context	Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus).
Negation	Verb: deny; contradict, contravene; controvert, give denial to, gainsay, negative, shake the head.
Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus.

Crosswords: Gainsay

English words defined with "gainsay": Againsay ♦ Gainsaid, Gainsaying ♦ Withsay. (references)

Etymologies containing "gainsay": Againsay ♦ Withsay. (references)

Domain	Usage
Screenplays	Do not gainsay what I say that we may make headway. (Moonlighting; writing credit: Eric Blakeney)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Title	Author	Quote
A Christmas Carol	Dickens, Charles	I will not gainsay it, Spirit.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

"Gainsay" is generally used as a lexical verb (infinitive) -- approximately 92.31% of the time. "Gainsay" is used about 13 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted)

Parts of Speech	Percent	Usage per 100 Million Words	Rank in English
Lexical Verb (infinitive)	92.31%	12	101,599
Noun (singular)	7.69%	1	339,140
Total	100.00%	13	N/A

The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com.

Language		Translations for "gainsay"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses.
Albanian		mohoj (abnegate, deny, disaffirm, disavow, disclaim, disown, negate, negative, rat, refuse, repudiate, retract, set aside), kundërshtoj (censure, challenge, combat, condemn, contest, contradict, controvert, counter, cross, demur, deprecate, discountenance, discourage, dispute, flout, fly in the face of, impugn, kick, mind, object, oppose, oppugn, protest, react, rebel, rebuke, rebut, recalcitrate, refuse, resist, retort, set one's face against, stick to, stickle, Stonewall, take exception to). (various references)

Arabic		‏نفى (banish, be exiled, deny, disclaim, exile, expatriate, proscribe, relegate, transport), ‏نكر (contradict, controvert, deny, deny oneself, disallow, disbelieve, disclaim, negate, negative, rebut, recant, renege, renounce, repudiate, retract, unreel), ‏خالف (be at odds with, dissent, fly in the face of, infringe, transgress). (various references)

Bulgarian		оспорвам (call down, contest, contravene, controvert, debate, dispute, impugn, litigate, oppugn, query, question), отричам (abnegate, denounce, disclaim, negate, negative, proscribe, renounce, repudiate, retract, testify against). (various references)

Czech		odporovat (antagonize, contradict, contravene, go against, oppose, protest, resist, withstand). (various references)

Farsi		مخالفت (Aversion, Defiance, Objection, Opposition, Remonstrance, Repugnance, Resistance), نقض کردن (Breach, Break, Contravene, Infract, Quash, Reverse, Violate), انکارکردن (Deny, Disclaim, Dispute, Renege, Renounce, Repudiate, Unsay), انکار (Denial, Disavow, Disavowal, Repudiation), ردکردن (Balk, Confute, Controvert, Decline, Deny, Disallow, Disapprove, Disavow, Disclaim, Disown, Disprove, Ignore, Impugn, Overrule, Rebuff, Rebut, Refuse, Refute, Rejcet, Repel, Repudiate, Veto). (various references)

French		nier, démentir, contredire. (various references)

German		leugnen (abnegate, denial, deny, forswear, renounce, to deny). (various references)

Greek		αρνούμαι (abnegate, dcline, decline, deny, disavow, disclaim, negate, negative, rebuff, refuse), διαψεύδω (belie, contradict, defeat, deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, refute). (various references)

Hungarian		ellentmond valakinek. (various references)

Indonesian		menyangkal (confute, contradict, controvert, deny, disclaim, disprove, negate). (various references)

Italian		negare (abnegate, deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, negate, refuse, repudiate, unsay, withhold). (various references)

Pig Latin		ainsaygay.(various references)

Portuguese		negar (abnegate, contradict, debar, deny, disavow, disclaimer, discreditable, disparage, negate, negative, repudiate, sublate, to negate, whittle down, withhold), impugnação (accusation, impeccability, impugnment, objection), emolumento (emolument, fee, stipend), discutir (agitate, argue, canvass, controvert, debate, deliberate, discourse, discuss, dispute, knock off, moot, quarrel, rap, reason, spar, strike off, talk over, traverse, ventilate), contradizer (contradict, deny, disaffirm), contradição (contradiction, contrary, denial, inconsistent, negationist). (various references)

Romanian		tãgãdui (abnegate, contest, deny, disavow, disclaim, disown, negate, negative), nega (abjure, challenge, deny, disaffirm, disavow, impugn, negate, negative, repudiate, traverse), dezminţi (belie, deny, disavow, give the lie to, repulse), contrazice (belie, confute, contradict, counter, ruffle). (various references)

Russian		отрицать (abnegate, deny, disaffirm, disavow, disclaim, negate, refuse to acknowledge, say no, traverse). (various references)

Scottish		breugnaich (bely). (various references)

Serbo-Croatian		protivrečiti (belie, contradict, disagree), poreći (deny, disavow, retract, traverse, unsay). (various references)

Spanish		negar (abnegate, cut, decry, deny, disclaim, disprove, negate, negative, refuse, to negate), contradicho, contradecir (contradict, controvert). (various references)

Swedish		motsäga (belie, contradict, impugn, negate), bestrida (challenge, contest, contradict, contravene, defray, deny, disallow, dispute, fill, impugn, oppugn, support, traverse). (various references)

Thai		ปฏิเสธ (negate, reject, spurn). (various references)

Turkish		reddetmek (abnegate, cast off, challenge, controvert, damn, declare off, deny, disaffirm, disallow, disapprove, disavow, disdain, dismiss, disown, dispute, draw the line, fall down, negate, negative, Nix, overrule, protest, quash, rebut, refuse, refute, reject, renege, renounce, repel, repudiate, rule out, scout, set aside, spurn, take objection to, throw out, turn back, turn down, turn thumbs down on, veto, wave aside), kabul etmemek (cast to the winds, decline, disapprove, disclaim, refuse, reject, repudiate, rule out, rule smth. out of order, turn thumbs down on, wave aside), itiraz etmek (argue, argue against smth., blow the whistle on, buck, challenge, contest, contravene, demur, deprecate, dispute, except, expostulate, interpose, make an objection to, object, object to, oppose, protest, protest against, raise an objection to, remonstrate, take exception to, take objection to), inkâr etmek (abnegate, deny, disallow, disavow, disclaim, disown, go back on, negate, repudiate). (various references)

Ukranian		суперечність (antagonism, antilogy, antinomy, collision, conflict, contradiction, contrariety, repugnance), суперечити (belie, conflict with, contradict, counter, cut across, disagree), заперечувати (abnegate, answer, answer back, challenge, contradict, contravene, demur, deny, disaffirm, disallow, disavow, disclaim, disown, expostulate, forbid, impugn, mind, negative, nill, object, oppugn, rejoin, talk back), протиріччя (antinomy). (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references.

Language	Period	Translations
Latin	500 BCE-Modern	contradico. (various references)
Old English	450-1100	gegn-. (various references)
Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Language	Date	Source	Luke Chapter 21, Verse 15
Greek (transliterated)	250 BC	Septuagint	Egw gar dwsw umin stoma kai sofian h ou dunhsontai anteipein oude antisthnai panteV oi antikeimenoi umin
Latin	405	Vulgate	Ego enim dabo vobis os et sapientiam cui non poterunt resistere et contradicere omnes adversarii vestri
Old English	990	West Saxon	Ic sylle eow muð and wisdom. þam ne magon ealle eower wiðerwinnan wiðstandan and wiðcweðan;
Middle English	1395	Wyclif	To whiche alle youre aduersaries schulen not mowe ayenstonde, and ayenseie.
Renaissance English	1526	Tyndale	For I will geve you a mouth and wisdome where agaynste all youre adversarys shall not be able to speake nor resist.
Jacobean English	1611	King James	For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.
Victorian English	1833	Webster	For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.
Basic English	1964	Ogden	For I will give you words and wisdom, so that not one of those who are against you will be able to get the better of you, or to put you in the wrong.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Language	Luke Chapter 21, Verse 15
Bulgarian	защото Аз ще ви дам тъй мъдро да отговорите*(�"ръцки: Уста и мъдрост.), щото всичките ви противници ще бъдат безсилни да ви противостоят или противоречат.
Cebuano	kay ako magahatag ra unya kaninyog baba ug kaalam nga batok niini walay kaaway ninyo nga arang makasukol o makasapuk.
Chinese	� 為我必賜 � 們口才智慧、是 � 們一切敵人所敵不住、駁不 �' 的。
Croatian	Ta ja æu vam dati usta i mudrost kojoj se neæe moæi suprotstaviti niti oduprijeti nijedan vaš protivnik.
Danish	Thi jeg, vil give eder Mund og Visdom, som alle eders Modstandere ikke skulle kunne modstå eller modsige.
Dutch	Want Ik zal u mond en wijsheid geven, welke niet zullen kunnen tegenspreken, noch wederstaan allen, die zich tegen u zetten.
Finnish	Sillä minä annan teille suun ja viisauden, jota vastaan eivät ketkään teidän vastustajanne kykene asettumaan tai väittämään.
French	car je vous donnerai une bouche et une sagesse � laquelle tous vos adversaires ne pourront résister ou contredire.
German	Denn ich will euch Mund und Weisheit geben, welcher nicht sollen widersprechen können noch widerstehen alle eure Widersacher.
Haitian Creole	Se mwen menm ki va mete pawòl nan bouch nou, ki va ban nou konprann. Konsa, nan moun ki nan kont avèk nou yo, yo yonn p'ap ka kenbe tèt ak nou, ni yo p'ap kapab demanti sa n'a di.
Hungarian	Mert én adok néktek szájat és bölcseséget, melynek ellene nem szólhatnak, sem ellene nem állhatnak mind azok, a kik magokat ellenetekbe vetik.
Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari	Aku sendiri akan memberi kepadamu kata-kata dan kebijaksanaan itu, sehingga tak seorang pun dari musuh-musuhmu dapat melawan atau menyangkal apa yang kalian katakan.
Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama	Karena Aku ini memberi lidah kepadamu dan hikmat, yang tiada dapat dilawani atau dibantahi oleh segala lawanmu.
Italian	io vi darò lingua e sapienza, a cui tutti i vostri avversari non potranno resistere, né controbattere.
Korean	내 가 너 희 의 모 �" 대 � � 이 능 히 대 항 하 거 나 변 박 � 수 없 �" 구 재 와 지 혜 를 너 희 에 게 주 리 라
Latvian	Jo es jums doðu valodu un gudrîbu, kurai visi jûsu pretinieki nespçs pretoties un pretî runât.
Maori	Maku hoki e hoatu ki a koutou he mangai, he matauranga, e kore e taea te whakakahore, te pehi, e o koutou hoa whawhai katoa.
Modern Greek	διοτι εγω θελω σας δωσει στομα και σοφιαν, εις την οποιαν δεν θελουσι δυνηθη να αντιλογησωσιν ουδε να αντισταθωσι παντες οι εναντιοι σας.
Norwegian	for jeg skal gi eder munn og visdom som alle eders motstandere ikke kan motstå eller motsi.
Portuguese	porque eu vos darei boca e sabedoria, a que nenhum dos vossos adversário poderá resistir nem contradizer.
Rumanian	cqci vq voi da o gurq wi o knyelepciune, cqreia nu -i vor putea rqspunde, nici sta kmpotrivq toyi protivnicii vowtri.
Russian	Й�'П с �"БН ЧБН ХУФБ Й � ТЕНХ�"ТПУФШ, ЛПФПТПК ОЕ ЧПЪНПЗХФ � ТПФЙЧПТЕЮЙФШ ОЙ � ТПФЙЧПУФПСФШ ЧУЕ, � ТПФЙЧСЭЙЕУС ЧБН.
Shuar	Tura atumi nemasri nakitramainiak "Wáitiaiti" titinian tujinkiarat tusan, winia nekatairjai chichastinian amastatjarme. Tuma asamtai "Jurakuisha warinia tiniak Kíishtumaktaj tusan aetak Enentáimsashtatjai" titiarum.'
Spanish	Porque yo os daré boca y sabiduría, a la cual no podrán resistir ni contradecir todos los que se os opongan.
Swahili	kwa sababu mimi mwenyewe nitawapeni ufasaha wa maneno na hekima, hivyo kwamba zenu hawataweza kustahimili wala kupinga.
Swedish	Ty jag skall giva eder sådana ord och sådan vishet, att ingen av edra vedersakare skall kunna stå emot eller säga något emot.
Thai	�"้วยว่าเราจะให้ปากและปัญญาแก่ท่าน ซึ่งศัตรูทั้งหลายของท่านจะต่อต้านและคั�"ค้านไม่ไ�"้
Ukrainian	бо дам Я вам мову та мудрість, що не зможуть противитись чи суперечити їй всі противники ваші.
Uma	Aku' moto-damo mpai' to mpowai' -koi petompoi' to monoto, alaa-na uma ria haduaa ngkai bali' -ni to mpokule' mpobaro ba mposapuaka napa to ni'uli'.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Derivations
	Words beginning with "gainsay": gainsayer, gainsayers, gainsaying, gainsays. (additional references)
Misspellings
	"Gainsay" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: gainsary, Gainsi, Gainza, Ganesan, gatineau, genizah, ghanistan, gyaincain, gyainvain, Sainsby. (additional references)
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references).

# of Phoneme Matches	Pronunciation	Word(s) rhyming with "gainsay" (pronounced gā"nsā')
3	-n s ā'	fiance.
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams
	Words within the letters "a-a-g-i-n-s-y"
	-1 letter: saying.
	-2 letters: again, angas, ayins, gains, saiga, sanga, yagis, yangs.
	-3 letters: agas, agin, ains, anas, anga, anis, ansa, ayin, gain, gays, gins, nags, nays, saga, sagy, sain, sang, sign, sing, snag, yagi, yang, yins.
	-4 letters: aas, aga, ain, ais, ana, ani, any, ays, gan, gas, gay, gin, ins, nag, nay, sag, say, sin, syn, yin.
	-5 letters: aa, ag, ai, an, as, ay, in, is, na, si, ya.
	Words containing the letters "a-a-g-i-n-s-y"
	+1 letter: assaying, gainsays, gymnasia.
	+2 letters: agrypnias, analysing, anisogamy, gainsayer, kayakings, salarying, sashaying.
	+3 letters: amygdalins, fantasying, gainsayers, gainsaying, paralysing, sanguinary.
	+4 letters: angioplasty, bioassaying, causewaying, disarraying, misassaying, phantasying, playactings, playmakings, syntagmatic.
	+5 letters: appraisingly, asphyxiating, gynecomastia, nauseatingly, sanguinarily, tracklayings.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro.