STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

honey · Gucci

random english/writing question

bumblebee · Dooney & Bourke

deprive? what's the sentence?

honey · Gucci

here's the sentence:

the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the BOE is blatantly attempting to (?) ms. x's right to hire a lawyer of her choosing.

i like deprive, i was also thinking of revoke, but i'm not sure.

Hermes

www.merriam-webster.com

Entry Word: deny
Function: verb
Text: 1
Synonyms DISCLAIM, disacknowledge, disallow, disavow, disown, repudiate
Related Word abandon, desert, forsake
Contrasted Words adopt, embrace, espouse; recognize
Antonyms acknowledge; admit
2 to refuse to grant <he was unwilling to deny the child's request>
Synonyms disallow, keep back, refuse, withhold
Idioms say no to, turn thumbs down on
Contrasted Words allow, concede, let, permit; afford, give
Antonyms grant
3 to restrain (as oneself) from or forgo what is pleasant or satisfying <decided to deny himself a second piece of pie>
Synonyms abstain, constrain, curb, hold back, refrain
Related Word eschew, forbear, forgo, sacrifice; inhibit, restrain; avoid, shun
Contrasted Words overdo, overindulge
Antonyms indulge
4 to refuse to accept as true, valid, or worthy of consideration <denying the existence of witches>
Synonyms contradict, contravene, cross, disaffirm, gainsay, impugn, negate, negative, traverse
Related Word decline, refuse, reject, repudiate; confute, controvert, disprove, rebut, refute; downface
Contrasted Words affirm, assert, aver; allow, grant; authenticate, corroborate, substantiate, validate, verify; avow, confess; claim, submit
Antonyms concede; confirm

-- Edited by detroit at 20:40, 2005-01-26

bumblebee · Dooney & Bourke

oooh, repudiate! it has the whiff of "repugnant" but also means what you want...

halleybird · Hermes

for that sentence, I'd go with plain ol' refuse.

Mia · Kate Spade

quote:
Originally posted by: halleybird
"for that sentence, I'd go with plain ol' refuse."

I was just thinking I liked "deny" best. "Revoke" is slightly different than deny, isn't it? Revoke seems to imply that the party doing the revoking somehow has the...power to revoke. Uh. OK, what I mean is, for me to revoke someone's right to dance on my lawn it implies that I had initially given them the right to do so. Denying someone the right to dance on my lawn does not imply that initial granting of a right. To me. Anyway I am unsure of the context, maybe revoke does work best?

poptart · Coach

quote:
Originally posted by: honey
"here's the sentence: the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the BOE is blatantly attempting to (?) ms. x's right to hire a lawyer of her choosing. i like deprive, i was also thinking of revoke, but i'm not sure."

Honey, I think in your sentence the word 'obstruct' might be better than 'refuse' or 'deny.' Refuse and deny both carry the connotation of a direct, well, refusal of her rights. Since you say they are "attempting" I think obstruct would be better. I.e. "The only conclusion that can be drawn is that the BOE is attempting to obstruct Ms. X's right to hire a lawyer of her choosing." To give the sentence more weight, I would delete "blatantly" and add something before "right" like court-granted right or something else lawyer-ish. This would emphasize the fact that her right is inherent in the system, and give more force to the idea that they are obstructing it. HTH

esquiress · Marc Jacobs

violate?

Mia · Kate Spade

terminate with extreme prejudice?

honey · Gucci

thanks for all the input ladies, you guys are so helpful. i ended up just going with revoke. which i'm not really feeling, but it's a draft for my boss. i figured she could toy with it and make it sound the way she wanted.

halleybird · Hermes

quote:
Originally posted by: Mia
" I was just thinking I liked "deny" best. "Revoke" is slightly different than deny, isn't it? Revoke seems to imply that the party doing the revoking somehow has the...power to revoke. Uh. OK, what I mean is, for me to revoke someone's right to dance on my lawn it implies that I had initially given them the right to do so. Denying someone the right to dance on my lawn does not imply that initial granting of a right. To me. Anyway I am unsure of the context, maybe revoke does work best? "

I agree. I also think that "revoke" connotates that the person had something, then it was taken away. If the right was never granted in the first place, it isn't really revoked...