Meaning & use
disagree
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Meanings
verbintransitive
To have a different opinion from someone, or to say so.
Grammar: No object; use with before the person and about or on before the topic: disagree with her about money.
Patterns
- disagree with someone
- disagree about something
- disagree on something
I disagree with you about the best route.
The two experts disagreed on the cause of the fire.
Nobody dared to disagree with the boss.
verbintransitiveformal
To be different from other facts or reports, so that both cannot be true.
Grammar: The subject is usually a thing: the figures disagree.
Patterns
- something disagrees with something
The two witness reports disagree about the time.
His account of events disagrees with the video.
verbintransitiveold-fashioned
Of food or a climate, to cause you to feel unwell.
Grammar: Used with with: the fish disagreed with me.
Patterns
- something disagrees with someone
Spicy food disagrees with me.
The damp climate disagreed with the old man.
Word forms
| third person singular | disagrees |
|---|---|
| past tense | disagreed |
| past participle | disagreed |
| -ing form | disagreeing |
Common combinations
- strongly disagree
- I strongly disagree with that statement.
- disagree with someone
- Please do not disagree with your teacher rudely.
- disagree about something
- They disagree about where to eat.
- respectfully disagree
- I respectfully disagree with the ruling.
- agree to disagree
- We will have to agree to disagree on politics.
- completely disagree
- I completely disagree with his plan.
Synonyms and how they differ
- differ
- Differ is milder and can mean simply be unlike, while disagree means actually holding an opposing view.
- dissent
- Dissent is formal and describes openly opposing an official view.
- object
- Object means to say you are against a plan or action, and is more specific than disagree.
- quarrel
- Quarrel means to argue angrily, which is stronger than just disagreeing.
Opposites
Word family
- disagreement noun
- a difference of opinion
- disagreeable adjective
- unpleasant
- disagreeably adverb
- in an unpleasant way
- agree verb
- the opposite verb
Commonly confused: disagree or disagreeable?
disagree vs disagreeable
Disagreeable describes something or someone unpleasant, whereas disagree is about opinions.
Practice
Which preposition completes the sentence? I disagree ___ my brother about politics.
Choose one answer.
Disagree takes with before a person. To, at and for are not used in that pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “disagree”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.