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deign

Verb

IPA /deɪn/

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Meaning in plain English

To do something reluctantly because you consider it beneath your importance.

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Pronunciation

deign/deɪn/

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A person considers a request beneath them
They reluctantly agree to answer

To deign to reply is to reply while acting as though it is beneath your importance.

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He did not deign to answer my greeting.
The fictional director finally deigned to read the trainees' proposal.

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He did not ________ to answer my greeting.

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deign — To do something reluctantly because you consider it beneath your importance.

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To do something reluctantly because you consider it beneath your importance.

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Word origin

From Old French deignier, ultimately from Latin dignari, meaning to consider worthy.

Did you know?

Deign commonly appears in negative sentences, such as she would not deign to reply.

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