MEANING
To correct someone’s mistaken belief or impression.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- disabuse someone of a notion
- disabuse of an illusion
On the page
The first winter disabused them of their romantic ideas about the island.
She gently disabused him of the notion that silence meant agreement.
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- disabuse
- Past tense
- disabused
- Past participle
- disabused
- Present participle
- disabusing
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- disabuse
- Present continuous
- am/is/are disabusing
- Present perfect
- have/has disabused
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been disabusing
- Past
- disabused
- Past continuous
- was/were disabusing
- Past perfect
- had disabused
- Past perfect continuous
- had been disabusing
- Future
- will disabuse
- Future continuous
- will be disabusing
- Future perfect
- will have disabused
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been disabusing
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Explore related collections
Usage notes
Primary category: literary. Forms: disabuse; disabuses; disabused; disabused; disabusing Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Third-person singular: disabuses.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
Keep a thought for later. Sign in to save privately.