Definition of "denial" []

• A refusal to comply with or satisfy a request. (noun)
• A refusal to grant the truth of a statement or allegation; a contradiction. (noun)
• Law The opposing by a defendant of an allegation of the plaintiff. (noun)
• A refusal to accept or believe something, such as a doctrine or belief. (noun)
• Psychology An unconscious defense mechanism characterized by refusal to acknowledge painful realities, thoughts, or feelings. (noun)

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.

• "Professionals in the field use the term denial to describe this psychological response in which the self shields itself from feelings it cannot bear."
• "For her to be in denial is now making her look more like Bush than anything."
• "I think the chasm between reality based people and those in denial is growing so wide that people are now shouting across it …"