I. rə̇ˈjekt, rēˈj- transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English rejecten, from Latin rejectus, past participle of Latin reicere, rejicere, from re- + -icere, -jicere (from jacere to throw) — more at jet
1. : to refuse to acknowledge, adopt, believe, acquiesce in, receive, or submit to : decline to accept : refuse
considered a proposition fairly and rejected it — Willa Cather
reject a diplomatic note
reject a claim
2. obsolete : to cast off (as a person) : forsake
3. : to refuse to have, use, or take for some purpose : cast or throw away as useless, unsatisfactory, or worthless : discard
several publishers rejected the manuscript — American Guide Series: New York
memory … rejects what has not interested and impressed it — Laurence Binyon
rejected by the recruiting station — O.S.J.Gogarty
4.
a. : to refuse to hear, receive, or admit : rebuff , repel
parents who reject the child — A.L.Porterfield
underprivileged people feel basically rejected by society — Frank Fremont-Smith
b. : to refuse (a person) as lover or spouse
rejected by her lover — J.T.Farrell
5. : to refuse to grant, consider, or accede to
the demand was at once rejected by the baronage — J.R.Green
6.
a. : to throw or cast back : repulse
b. obsolete : to cut off (as a person) from something
the young men were … rejected from any hopes of the kingdom — William Whiston
7. : to spew out (as from the mouth or stomach) : eject
Synonyms: see decline
II. ˈrēˌjekt sometimes rə̇ˈj- or -rēˈj- noun
( -s )
: one that is or has been rejected: as
a. : one rejected as not wanted, unsatisfactory, or not fulfilling standard requirements
good eggs found in the rejects by recandling — Experiment Station Record
how often the deepest convictions of one generation are the rejects of the next — Learned Hand
b. : a partly chipped stone once started as an implement and then rejected
c. : a person rejected as unfit for military service
army culls, physical or mental rejects from overseas duty — Taliaferro Boatwright