MEANING
To dispute the truth or validity of something.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- gainsay the evidence
On the page
Nobody could gainsay the evidence.
He gainsaid her account without explanation.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- gainsay
- Past tense
- gainsaid
- Past participle
- gainsaid
- Present participle
- gainsaying
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- gainsay
- Present continuous
- am/is/are gainsaying
- Present perfect
- have/has gainsaid
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been gainsaying
- Past
- gainsaid
- Past continuous
- was/were gainsaying
- Past perfect
- had gainsaid
- Past perfect continuous
- had been gainsaying
- Future
- will gainsay
- Future continuous
- will be gainsaying
- Future perfect
- will have gainsaid
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been gainsaying
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
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Usage notes
Primary category: literary. Forms: gainsay; gainsays; gainsaid; gainsaid; gainsaying Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Third-person singular: gainsays.
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