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Definition of "discourage" []

  • To deprive of confidence, hope, or spirit. (verb-transitive)
  • To hamper by discouraging; deter. (verb-transitive)
  • To try to prevent by expressing disapproval or raising objections. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "discourage" in a sentence
  • "In the 1970s, King Bhumibol Adulyadej coined the term to discourage indebtedness caused by overinvestment and overconsumption in rural areas."
  • "Obama specifically referred to the "possibility of fees for transactions that we want to discourage, that is one of the ideas that is going to be working its way through the process.""
  • "And in terms of the last point that you made which is the possibility of fees for transactions that we want to discourage, that is one of the ideas that is going to be working its way through the process."