challenge: I challenged him on the hypocrisy of his political attitudes.
deny: They all denied ever having seen her.
contest: Her former employer contested the case.
dis|quali|fy /d I skwɒ l I fa I / (disqualifies , disqualifying , disqualified ) VERB When someone is disqualified , they are officially stopped from taking part in a particular event, activity, or competition, usually because they have done something wrong. □ [be V -ed + from ] He was convicted of corruption, and will be disqualified from office for seven years. □ [V n] The stewards conferred and eventually decided to disqualify us. [Also V n + from ] ● dis|quali|fi|ca|tion /d I skwɒ l I f I ke I ʃ ə n/ (disqualifications ) N‑VAR [oft with poss] □ [+ from ] Livingston faces a four-year disqualification from athletics.
dis|qui|et /d I skwa I ət/ (disquiets , disquieting , disquieted )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Disquiet is a feeling of worry or anxiety. [FORMAL ] □ There is growing public disquiet about the cost of such policing.
2 VERB If something disquiets you, it makes you feel anxious. [FORMAL ] □ [V n] This information disquieted him. ● dis|qui|et|ing ADJ □ He found her letter disquieting.
dis|qui|si|tion /d I skw I z I ʃ ə n/ (disquisitions ) N‑VAR A disquisition is a detailed explanation of a particular subject. [FORMAL ] □ Amanda launched into an authoritative disquisition about contracts.
dis|re|gard /d I sr I gɑː r d/ (disregards , disregarding , disregarded ) VERB If you disregard something, you ignore it or do not take account of it. □ [V n] He disregarded the advice of his executives. ● N‑UNCOUNT Disregard is also a noun. □ [+ for ] Whoever planted the bomb showed a total disregard for the safety of the public.
dis|re|pair /d I sr I peə r / PHRASE If something is in disrepair or is in a state of disrepair , it is broken or in bad condition. □ The house was unoccupied and in a bad state of disrepair.
dis|repu|table /d I sre pjʊtəb ə l/ ADJ If you say that someone or something is disreputable , you are critical of them because they are not respectable or cannot be trusted. [DISAPPROVAL ] □ …the noisiest and most disreputable bars.
dis|re|pute /d I sr I pjuː t/ PHRASE If something is brought into disrepute or falls into disrepute , it loses its good reputation, because it is connected with activities that people do not approve of. □ Such people bring our profession into disrepute.
dis|re|spect /d I sr I spe kt/
1 N‑UNCOUNT If someone shows disrespect , they speak or behave in a way that shows lack of respect for a person, law, or custom. □ [+ for ] …young people with complete disrespect for authority.
2 PHRASE You can say ' no disrespect to someone or something' when you are just about to criticize them, in order to indicate that you are not hostile towards them or admire them for other things. □ No disrespect to John Beck, but the club has been happier since he left.
dis|re|spect|ful /d I sr I spe ktfʊl/ ADJ If you are disrespectful , you show no respect in the way that you speak or behave to someone. □ [+ to/of ] …accusations that he had been disrespectful to the Queen. ● dis|re|spect|ful|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ They get angry if they think they are being treated disrespectfully.
dis|robe /d I sroʊ b/ (disrobes , disrobing , disrobed ) VERB When someone disrobes , they remove their clothes. [FORMAL ] □ [V ] She stood up and began to disrobe, folding each garment neatly.
dis|rupt /d I srʌ pt/ (disrupts , disrupting , disrupted ) VERB If someone or something disrupts an event, system, or process, they cause difficulties that prevent it from continuing or operating in a normal way. □ [V n] Anti-war protesters disrupted the debate.
dis|rup|tion /d I srʌ pʃ ə n/ (disruptions ) N‑VAR When there is disruption of an event, system, or process, it is prevented from continuing or operating in a normal way. □ The strike is expected to cause delays and disruption to flights from Britain.
dis|rup|tive /d I srʌ pt I v/ ADJ To be disruptive means to prevent something from continuing or operating in a normal way. □ There are many ways children's disruptive behaviour can be managed.
dis|ru p|tive tech|no l|ogy (disruptive technologies ) N‑COUNT A disruptive technology is a new technology, such as computers and the internet, which has a rapid and major effect on technologies that existed before. [BUSINESS ] □ …the disruptive technologies of the 20th century, such as electricity and the car.
diss /d I s/ (disses , dissing , dissed ) VERB If someone disses you, they criticize you unfairly or speak to you in a way that does not show respect. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n] He believes that his records speak for themselves and ignores those who diss him.
dis|sat|is|fac|tion /d I ssæ t I sfæ kʃ ə n/ (dissatisfactions ) N‑VAR If you feel dissatisfaction with something, you are not contented or pleased with it. □ [+ with ] She has already expressed her dissatisfaction with this aspect of the policy.
dis|sat|is|fied /d I ssæ t I sfa I d/ ADJ If you are dissatisfied with something, you are not contented or pleased with it. □ [+ with ] 82% of voters are dissatisfied with the way their country is being governed.
dis|sect /da I se kt, d I -/ (dissects , dissecting , dissected )
1 VERB If someone dissects the body of a dead person or animal, they carefully cut it up in order to examine it scientifically. □ [V n] We dissected a frog in biology class. ● dis|sec|tion /da I se kʃ ə n, d I -/ (dissections ) N‑VAR □ Researchers need a growing supply of corpses for dissection.