discard

1 of 2

verb

dis·card dis-ˈkärd

ˈdis-ˌkärd

discarded; discarding; discards

Synonyms of discard next

transitive verb

: to get rid of especially as useless or unwanted

a pile of discarded tires

They quickly discarded the idea.

: to remove (a playing card) from one's hand (see hand entry 1 sense 7a(1))

discarded an ace

: to play (any card except a trump) from a suit different from the one led

intransitive verb

: to discard a playing card

discard at the end of your turn

discardable

dis-ˈkärd-də-bəl

ˈdis-ˌkär-

adjective

discarder noun

discard

2 of 2

noun

dis·card ˈdis-ˌkärd

: the act of removing a playing card from one's hand : the act of discarding (see discard entry 1 sense 2a)

: a card discarded

collected the discards

: one that is cast off or rejected

Choose the Right Synonym for discard

discard, cast, shed, slough, scrap, junk mean to get rid of.

discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless.

discard old clothes

cast, especially when used with off, away, or out, implies a forceful rejection or repudiation.

cast off her friends

shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster.

shed a bad habit

finally sloughed off the depression

scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form.

scrap all the old ways

would junk our educational system

Examples of discard in a Sentence

Verb Remove and discard the stems. a pile of discarded tires She discarded the six of hearts. Noun toss all of your discards in the garbage

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Verb

Ibarra was also seen discarding a bloodied jacket and disposable gloves near his apartment on Feb. 22 at 9:44 a.m., prosecutors said. —

Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 20 Nov. 2024 Ready to eat tomatoes contaminated with raw meat juices discarded. —

Gege Reed, The Courier-Journal, 20 Nov. 2024

Noun

When West discards, South knows West had two clubs, three trumps and surely no more than six diamonds (since East followed low-high on the high diamonds). —

Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 16 Nov. 2024 Are the players wondering if owner Jed York is ready to end this era with a series of discards, which already started with the release of stalwart Arik Armstead in March? —

Tim Kawakami, The Athletic, 9 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for discard

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1578, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

1719, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler

The first known use of discard was circa 1578

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Discard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discard. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

discard

1 of 2 verb

dis·card dis-ˈkärd

ˈdis-ˌkärd

: to remove a playing card from one's hand

: to get rid of as useless or unwanted

discard an old hat

discardable

-ə-bəl

adjective

discard

2 of 2 noun

dis·card ˈdis-ˌkärd

: the act of discarding in a card game

: a person or thing cast off or rejected

Last Updated: 25 Nov 2024 - Updated example sentences

Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the Day

frugal

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

discard

verb

noun

Synonyms

Examples of discard in a Sentence

Word History

Dictionary Entries Near discard

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition