- 1 [intransitive, transitive] to say or do something to show that you disagree with or disapprove of something, especially publicly protest (about/against/at something) Students took to the streets to protest against the decision. The victim's widow protested at the leniency of the sentence. There's no use protesting, I won't change my mind. protest something (North American English) They fully intend to protest the decision. Synonymscomplainprotest object grumble moan whineThese words all mean to say that you are annoyed, unhappy or not satisfied about somebody/something.complain to say that you are annoyed, unhappy or not satisfied about somebody/something:I’m going to complain to the manager about this.protest to say or do something to show that you disagree with or disapprove of something, especially publicly; to give something as a reason for protesting:Students took to the streets to protest against the decision.object to say that you disagree with or disapprove of something; to give something as a reason for objecting:If nobody objects, we’ll postpone the meeting till next week. He objected that the police had arrested him without sufficient evidence.grumble (rather informal, disapproving) to complain about somebody/something in a bad-tempered way:They kept grumbling that they were cold.moan (British English, rather informal, disapproving) to complain about somebody/something in an annoying way:What are you moaning on about now?whine (rather informal, disapproving) to complain in an annoying, crying voice:Stop whining! ‘I want to go home,’ whined Toby. Whine is often used to talk about the way that young children complain.Patterns to complain/protest/grumble/moan/whine about something to complain/protest/grumble/moan at something to complain/protest/object/grumble/moan/whine to somebody to complain/protest/object/grumble/moan/whine that… Oxford Collocations Dictionary adverbstrongly, vehemently, vigorously, … verb + protestbegin to, try to, gather to, … prepositionabout, over, against, … phrasesthe freedom to protest, the right to protest See full entry See related entries: Protest
- 2[transitive] to say firmly that something is true, especially when you have been accused of something or when other people do not believe you protest something She has always protested her innocence. protest that… He protested that the journey was too far by car. + speech ‘That's not what you said earlier!’ Jane protested. More Like This Pronunciation changes by part of speech abuse, alternate, advocate, approximate, contract, converse, convict, decrease, delegate, discount, duplicate, estimate, export, extract, graduate, import, intimate, moderate, object, permit, present, protest, record, refund, refuse, subject, suspect, survey, torment, upgradeSee worksheet. Word Originlate Middle English (as a verb in the sense ‘make a solemn declaration’): from Old French protester, from Latin protestari, from pro- ‘forth, publicly’ + testari ‘assert’ (from testis ‘witness’).Extra examples Crowds gathered to protest about the police violence. Many people have protested at the cuts in state benefits. Many people protested over the tax increase. They were exercising their lawful right to protest. They were protesting against the proposed agreement. We have protested to the government. When he tried to protest, she insisted. protesting over an income tax increase the right to protest peacefully ‘That’s not what you said earlier!’ Jane protested. It’s no use protesting, I won’t change my mind. She has always protested her innocence. She protested that she could not receive a fair trial. The victim’s widow protested at the leniency of the sentence.
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BrE BrE//prəˈtest//; NAmE NAmE//prəˈtest//, also NAmE//ˈproʊtest//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they protest BrE BrE//prəˈtest//; NAmE NAmE//prəˈtest//, also NAmE//ˈproʊtest//
he / she / it protests BrE BrE//prəˈtests//; NAmE NAmE//prəˈtests//, NAmE//ˈproʊtests//
past simple protested BrE BrE//prəˈtestɪd//; NAmE NAmE//prəˈtestɪd//, NAmE//ˈproʊtestɪd//
past participle protested BrE BrE//prəˈtestɪd//; NAmE NAmE//prəˈtestɪd//, NAmE//ˈproʊtestɪd//
-ing form protesting BrE BrE//prəˈtestɪŋ//; NAmE NAmE//prəˈtestɪŋ//, NAmE//ˈproʊtestɪŋ//
ProtestCheck pronunciation: protest
