Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To attack as false or questionable; challenge in argument.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To attack by words or arguments; contradict; assail; call in question; gainsay.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To attack by words or arguments; to contradict; to assail; to call in question; to make insinuations against; to gainsay; to oppose.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb transitive, obsolete To assault, attack.
  • verb transitive To verbally assault, especially to argue against an opinion, motive, or action; to question the truth or validity of.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb attack as false or wrong

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English impugnen, from Old French impugner, from Latin impugnāre : in-, against; see in– + pugnāre, to fight; see peuk- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin impugnō, from im- + pugnō ("fight"), from pugnus ("fist") (as in English pugilism ("fighting with fists, boxing")), from Proto-Indo-European roots.

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