refusenik
re·fuse·nik/ɹəˈfjuznɪk/noun
refusenik is spelled R-E-F-U-S-E-N-I-K: 9 letters and 3 syllables (re·fuse·nik). It appears about once in every 38 million words in written English, the 189,524th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, refusenik means “One of the citizens of the former Soviet Union who was refused permission to emigrate (typically but not exclusively a Jewish citizen denied…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of refusenik is refuseniks or refuseniki.
How many letters and syllables are in refusenik?
| Letters | 9: R-E-F-U-S-E-N-I-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: re·fuse·nik |
| In writing | about once in every 38 million words; the 189,524th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is refusenik?
Refusenik appears about once in every 38 million words in written English, the 189,524th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce refusenik?
- UK /ɹɪˈfjuːznɪk/
- US /ɹəˈfjuznɪk/
- US /ɹi-/
Refusenik has 3 syllables, split re·fuse·nik in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-refusenik.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of refusenik
- refuseniks plural
- refuseniki plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does refusenik mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
slangOne of the citizens of the former Soviet Union who was refused permission to emigrate (typically but not exclusively a Jewish citizen denied permission to immigrate to Israel).
- 2
informalA person who refuses to do something, usually as a protest; for example, one who refuses conscription or vaccination.
Near-synonyms: recusant, decliner, dissenter, objector, protester, defier, maverick, nonconformist, rebel, renegade
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Refusenik in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | refuznik |
| German | Refusenik, Otkasnik , Verweigerer, Verweigerin |
| Portuguese | refusenik |
| Spanish | refusenik, refyuznik |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does refusenik come from?
From refuse + -nik (suffix denoting a nickname for a person who endorses, exemplifies, or is associated with something, often a particular ideology or preference), a calque of Russian отка́зник (otkáznik), from отка́з (otkáz, “denial, refusal, rejection, repudiation”) + -ник (-nik, suffix forming masculine nouns, usually denoting adherents, etc.).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).