Decline vs. Refuse: Know the Difference
By Shumaila Saeed || Updated on December 25, 2023
"Decline" means politely or gently refusing an offer or invitation, while "refuse" involves firmly or directly saying no to an offer, request, or proposal.
Key Differences
Decline often conveys a more polite or considerate refusal, typically used in social or professional settings to turn down offers or invitations without offense. Refuse, in contrast, is more direct and firm, often used when one wants to convey a strong or definitive rejection.
Shumaila Saeed
Nov 19, 2023
When someone declines something, it often carries an implication of regret or unwillingness, suggesting a softer or more diplomatic approach. Refusing, however, may imply a determined or deliberate decision, often without indicating regret or hesitation.
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Nov 19, 2023
The act of declining is generally seen as more courteous and is often accompanied by an explanation or excuse. Refusing, on the other hand, may not always include justification and can be perceived as more abrupt or uncompromising.
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Nov 19, 2023
Decline is often used in formal or polite contexts, such as declining an invitation to a formal event or a job offer. Refuse is more commonly employed in situations requiring clear and unambiguous rejection, such as refusing to comply with an unreasonable request.
Shumaila Saeed
Nov 19, 2023
In usage, "decline" can also mean a gradual decrease in strength, quantity, or quality, whereas "refuse" has no such connotation and is strictly used to denote rejection.
Shumaila Saeed
Nov 19, 2023
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Comparison Chart
Usage Context
Formal, courteous situations
Situations needing clear rejection
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Nov 19, 2023
Accompanying Explanation
Often includes an excuse
May not include justification
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Nov 19, 2023
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Decline and Refuse Definitions
Decline
Politely refuse an offer or invitation.
She declined the invitation due to prior commitments.
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Nov 19, 2023
Refuse
Firmly say no to a proposal or request.
He refused to lend his car to his friend.
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Nov 19, 2023
Decline
Politely turn down a proposal or suggestion.
He declined the job offer, preferring to stay with his current employer.
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Nov 19, 2023
Refuse
Reject an offer or opportunity definitively.
She refused the promotion, feeling it wasn't the right fit.
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Nov 19, 2023
Decline
Refuse subtly without causing offense.
She declined to comment on the controversial issue.
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Nov 19, 2023
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Refuse
Decline to do something categorically.
The witness refused to answer the question.
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Nov 19, 2023
Decline
To express polite refusal
I wanted to invite them but I was afraid they would decline.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
To indicate unwillingness to do, accept, give, or allow
She was refused admittance. He refused treatment.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To degrade or lower oneself; stoop
Refused to decline to their level of behavior.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To deteriorate gradually; fail
His health has been declining for years.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Items or material discarded or rejected as useless or worthless; trash or rubbish.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To draw to a gradual close
We made our way home as the day declined.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Collectively, items or material that have been discarded; rubbish, garbage.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
(transitive) To decline (a request or demand).
My request for a pay rise was refused.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
(intransitive) To decline a request or demand, forbear; to withhold permission.
I refuse to listen to this nonsense any more.
I asked the star if I could have her autograph, but she refused.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
(military) To throw back, or cause to keep back (as the centre, a wing, or a flank), out of the regular alignment when troops are about to engage the enemy.
To refuse the right wing while the left wing attacks
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
(intransitive) To move downwards, to fall, to drop.
The dollar has declined rapidly since 2001.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
To deny, as a request, demand, invitation, or command; to decline to do or grant.
That never yet refused your hest.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
(intransitive) To become weaker or worse.
My health declined in winter.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
To throw back, or cause to keep back (as the center, a wing, or a flank), out of the regular aligment when troops ar about to engage the enemy; as, to refuse the right wing while the left wing attacks.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
(transitive) To bend downward; to bring down; to depress; to cause to bend, or fall.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
To decline to accept; to reject; to deny the request or petition of; as, to refuse a suitor.
The cunning workman never doth refuseThe meanest tool that he may chance to use.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To turn or bend aside; to deviate; to stray; to withdraw.
A line that declines from straightness
Conduct that declines from sound morals
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
To deny compliance; not to comply.
Too proud to ask, too humble to refuse.
If ye refuse . . . ye shall be devoured with the sword.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
(transitive) To choose not to do something; refuse, forbear, refrain.
On reflection I think I will decline your generous offer.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
That which is refused or rejected as useless; waste or worthless matter.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Refused; rejected; hence; left as unworthy of acceptance; of no value; worthless.
Everything that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
(by extension) To run through from first to last; to recite in order as though declining a noun.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To reject a penalty against the opposing team, usually because the result of accepting it would benefit the non-penalized team less than the preceding play.
The team chose to decline the fifteen-yard penalty because their receiver had caught the ball for a thirty-yard gain.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To bend, or lean downward; to take a downward direction; to bend over or hang down, as from weakness, weariness, despondency, etc.; to condescend.
He . . . would decline even to the lowest of his family.
Disdaining to decline,Slowly he falls, amidst triumphant cries.
The ground at length became broken and declined rapidly.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To tend or draw towards a close, decay, or extinction; to tend to a less perfect state; to become diminished or impaired; to fail; to sink; to diminish; to lessen; as, the day declines; virtue declines; religion declines; business declines.
That empire must declineWhose chief support and sinews are of coin.
And presume to know . . . Who thrives, and who declines.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Elude, especially in a baffling way;
This behavior defies explanation
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To turn or bend aside; to deviate; to stray; to withdraw; as, a line that declines from straightness; conduct that declines from sound morals.
Yet do I not decline from thy testimonies.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Refuse to let have;
She denies me every pleasure
He denies her her weekly allowance
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To turn away; to shun; to refuse; - the opposite of accept or consent; as, he declined, upon principle.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Resist immunologically the introduction of some foreign tissue or organ;
His body rejected the liver of the donor
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To bend downward; to bring down; to depress; to cause to bend, or fall.
In melancholy deep, with head declined.
And now fair Phoebus gan decline in hasteHis weary wagon to the western vale.
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Refuse entrance or membership;
They turned away hundreds of fans
Black people were often rejected by country clubs
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To cause to decrease or diminish.
He knoweth his error, but will not seek to decline it.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To put or turn aside; to turn off or away from; to refuse to undertake or comply with; reject; to shun; to avoid; as, to decline an offer; to decline a contest; he declined any participation with them.
Could IDecline this dreadful hour?
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Oct 19, 2023
Refuse
Show firm denial or non-acceptance.
The committee refused all the submitted proposals.
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Nov 19, 2023
Decline
To inflect, or rehearse in order the changes of grammatical form of; as, to decline a noun or an adjective.
After the first declining of a noun and a verb.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
To run through from first to last; to repeat like a schoolboy declining a noun.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
A falling off; a tendency to a worse state; diminution or decay; deterioration; also, the period when a thing is tending toward extinction or a less perfect state; as, the decline of life; the decline of strength; the decline of virtue and religion.
Their fathers lived in the decline of literature.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
That period of a disorder or paroxysm when the symptoms begin to abate in violence; as, the decline of a fever.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
A gradual sinking and wasting away of the physical faculties; any wasting disease, esp. pulmonary consumption; as, to die of a decline.
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
A condition inferior to an earlier condition; a gradual falling off from a better state
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
Inflect for number, gender, case, etc.,
In many languages, speakers decline nouns, pronouns, and adjectives
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Oct 19, 2023
Decline
Show a decrease in quality, quantity, or strength.
The company's profits began to decline last quarter.
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Nov 19, 2023
Decline
Refuse gently in social or professional interactions.
They declined the dinner offer, citing a busy schedule.
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Nov 19, 2023
Repeatedly Asked Queries
Is declining always polite?
Generally, yes, it's considered a polite way to say no.
Shumaila Saeed
Nov 19, 2023
Can refuse be used in formal situations?
Yes, but it's more direct and may be less polite.
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Nov 19, 2023
Does declining imply a maybe later?
Sometimes, it can suggest potential future acceptance.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can refuse be seen as rude?
Sometimes, especially if it's abrupt or without explanation.
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Nov 19, 2023
Is it okay to refuse personal questions?
Yes, it's a way to maintain privacy.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can decline be used for physical decrease?
Yes, like declining health or profits.
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Nov 19, 2023
Is it common to refuse illegal requests?
Yes, refusal is appropriate for unethical or illegal demands.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can you refuse to disclose personal information?
Yes, especially to protect privacy or security.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can you decline a gift politely?
Yes, with a gentle and respectful approach.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can decline be a sign of diplomacy?
Yes, it's often used diplomatically to avoid offense.
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Nov 19, 2023
Do salespeople often face declines?
Yes, in the form of rejected offers or proposals.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can you refuse a government order?
Yes, but it may have legal consequences.
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Nov 19, 2023
Can children refuse instructions?
They can, but it may lead to disciplinary actions.
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Nov 19, 2023
Is it common to decline due to conflict of interest?
Yes, especially in professional or legal situations.
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Nov 19, 2023
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About Author
Written by
Shumaila SaeedShumaila Saeed, an expert content creator with 6 years of experience, specializes in distilling complex topics into easily digestible comparisons, shining a light on the nuances that both inform and educate readers with clarity and accuracy.
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