disagree

disagree — verb

1. When two or more people disagree, they hold a different view on a subject — for

1.verbintransitiveA2
Definition

When two or more people disagree, they hold a different view on a subject — for example, one person might think a plan is good while another considers it risky.

Example

Aoi disagreed with her brother about whose turn it was to do the dishes.

disagree with [person] about [topic]

The committee members disagreed on the best way to spend the remaining funds.

disagree on [topic] — inanimate group subject

Common collocations
  • disagree strongly
  • disagree completely
  • disagree fundamentally
  • disagree with someone
  • disagree about/on/over something
  • I beg to disagree
Synonyms
  • differ

    Milder and more formal; often used for everyday differences of taste (e.g., 'We differ on the best restaurant.')

  • take issue

    More formal and assertive; implies a specific point of disagreement (e.g., 'I take issue with your claim that…')

  • be at odds

    Stresses ongoing conflict rather than a single difference of opinion

Antonyms
  • agree

    The direct opposite — to share the same opinion

  • concur

    Formal synonym of 'agree'; used in official or academic contexts

Grammar Patterns

disagree + with [someone]

disagree + about/on/over [something]

disagree + that-clause

Common Mistakes

I disagree you about the price.
I disagree with you about the price.
'disagree' requires the preposition 'with' before the person whose opinion you do not share.
She disagreed that the plan would work.
She disagreed, saying the plan would not work.' or 'She disagreed with the idea that the plan would work.
A that-clause after 'disagree' is possible but less natural in informal English; a separate clause or 'with' + noun phrase is preferred.

2. When facts, numbers, or accounts disagree, they present conflicting information

2.verbintransitiveB1
Definition

When facts, numbers, or accounts disagree, they present conflicting information and cannot both be correct — for instance, if one witness says the car was red and another says it was blue, the statements disagree.

Example

The two weather reports disagree about how much rain will fall tomorrow.

inanimate subject: [reports] disagree about [topic]

The witness statements disagree on several key details of the car accident.

Common collocations
  • disagree with
  • reports disagree
  • statements disagree
  • numbers disagree
  • data disagree
  • disagree on particulars
Synonyms
  • differ

    The most common neutral alternative; can be used for both people and data

  • conflict

    Stronger; suggests a serious inconsistency that needs resolution

  • contradict

    More specific; one statement directly says the opposite of another

Antonyms
  • match

    When numbers or accounts give the same information

  • correspond

    More formal; suggests agreement between detailed sets of data

Grammar Patterns

[fact/statement] disagrees + with [other fact/statement]

disagree + about/on [detail]

Usage Note

Subject is usually an inanimate noun — reports, statements, numbers, data, accounts. This sense cannot refer to people; use Sense 1 (DIFFER IN OPINION) instead. Also rarely used in the continuous (progressive) form: it sounds unnatural to say 'the reports are disagreeing.'

Common Mistakes

The two witnesses are disagreeing about the time.
The two witnesses disagree about the time.
For this sense, the simple present or past is preferred; the continuous form sounds odd.

❌ 'My brother and I disagree about the budget figures.' — This is actually correct, but it uses Sense 1 (people differing in opinion). If you mean two sets of numbers are different, use an inanimate subject: 'The budget figures disagree.'

Phrasal verbs

disagree with

phrasal verb

To have a different opinion from someone or something.

I disagree with the new policy on school uniforms.

Sara disagreed with her brother about the vacation plan.

Idioms

agree to disagree

idiom

To accept that you and another person have different opinions and stop trying to persuade each other, without letting the disagreement damage your relationship.

After arguing for an hour about the best way to teach children, Jenna and Asher finally agreed to disagree.

The two scientists agreed to disagree on the cause of the disease, since neither could prove their theory.

agree to differ/disagree

idiom

When two people accept that they have different opinions and stop arguing about it.

Mia and Tom agreed to differ about the best movie.

After a long debate, we finally agreed to disagree.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All four words describe situations where people do not share the same opinion, but they differ in strength and register. 'Differ' is the mildest and most neutral — you can differ on a restaurant choice without any tension. 'Take issue with' is more formal and assertive, used when you want to challenge a specific point someone has made. 'Be at odds' suggests an ongoing state of conflict rather than a single disagreement, and often carries a sense of tension. 'Dispute' is the strongest; it implies active argument or challenge, not just a difference of opinion. For everyday use, 'differ' and 'disagree' are interchangeable, but 'disagree' covers a wider range of intensity — from a polite 'I disagree' to a heated argument. Example: 'We differ on which film to watch' (mild), versus 'The lawyers dispute the terms of the contract' (active contention).

differ ↗take issue withbe at oddsdispute ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

Old FrenchAnglo-NormanMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'disagree' comes from Old French 'desagreer', formed from 'des-' (meaning 'not' or 'opposite of') and 'agreer' (meaning 'to please, to receive with favour'). The prefix 'dis-' was added later in English to replace the French 'des-'. The word originally meant 'to refuse to agree or comply' before taking on its modern meaning of 'holding a different opinion'. It entered English in the late 1400s.