Basic Details
Word: Denounce
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: To say publicly and strongly that someone or something is wrong or evil.
Synonyms: condemn, criticise, censure, attack
Antonyms: praise, support, defend, applaud
How to Spell Denounce
Syllables: de - nounce
Tricky part: The middle is ounce, as in pounce and bounce, and the word ends ce, not se. Students write denounse or denownce.
Watch out for: denounse, denownce, dinounce
Memory tip: A cat may pounce and a leader may denounce: both end in the same five letters, o-u-n-c-e.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The newspaper denounced the plan to cut down the old banyan trees.
Example 2: Many writers denounced the ban on the book.
Example 3: She was quick to denounce anyone who littered the beach.
Fun Fact
Announce, pronounce and denounce all come from the Latin nuntiare, to report; a nuncio, the Pope's ambassador, comes from the same root.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the word opposite in meaning to denounce as used in the sentence:
Leaders from every party came forward to denounce the attack on the doctors at the district hospital.
a) report
b) condemn
c) criticise
d) praise
Show answer
d) praise. Leaders who denounce an attack condemn it loudly; praising it would be the reverse.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is misspelt. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. renounce 2. denounse 3. pronounce 4. announce
a) formally give something up
b) say publicly that something is wrong
c) say a word in a particular way
d) make something known publicly
Show answer
b) say publicly that something is wrong. Denounse should end in ce like the other three, so its meaning, to condemn in public, is the answer.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
dennounce
a) n
b) u
c) o
d) e
Show answer
a) n. Only one n comes after the de; the second n belongs to ounce.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which situation best shows someone denouncing something?
a) a principal condemning cheating in front of the whole school
b) a student copying notes neatly from the board in class
c) a teacher praising a project in front of the parents
d) a guard locking the school gate at the end of the day
Show answer
a) a principal condemning cheating in front of the whole school
2. The noun formed from denounce is ____.
a) denuntiation
b) denounciation
c) denunsiation
d) denunciation
Show answer
d) denunciation
