What does dissuading mean?
"Dissuading" is the present participle of the verb "dissuade," meaning to advise or urge someone not to do something. When you are dissuading a friend from a rash decision, you are attempting to change their mind through reasoning, warning, or earnest appeal — as opposed to simply forbidding or preventing them. The word carries a connotation of gentle, reasoned opposition rather than coercion, and it appears most often in formal or neutral writing, frequently in the pattern "dissuading someone from doing something." In everyday speech, people more commonly say they are "talking someone out of" an action, which gives "dissuading" a slightly literary flavor. The word derives from Latin roots meaning to "advise away": dis- (apart) combined with suadēre (to advise or urge), the same root that gives us "persuade" — its near opposite — and "suasion." Its noun form is "dissuasion," and the adjective is "dissuasive."
verbThe present participle and gerund of "dissuade": advising or urging someone not to do something, typically through argument or earnest appeal.
- To advise or urge a person not to take a particular course of action; to talk someone out of something.
"Despite her parents' tireless dissuading, Maya enrolled in art school instead of law school."
"The doctor spent an hour dissuading him from taking the unproven treatment."
"No amount of dissuading could keep the climbers off the mountain."
Dissuade literally means to 'advise apart' — in Latin, you're talking someone out of a course of action by pulling their counsel away from it.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of dissuading
"Dissuading" comes from the Latin verb dissuadēre, formed from dis- ("apart") and suadēre ("to advise, urge"), so its literal sense is "to advise apart" — to turn someone's mind away from an action. English adopted the base verb "dissuade" in the early 16th century, likely via Latin or French influence. It shares its root with "persuade" (literally "to advise toward"), making the pair elegant opposites, and with "suasion," the abstract noun for the act of urging.
Related word forms
How dissuading is actually used
Formal to neutral register; more common in written English than casual speech, where 'talking someone out of' often replaces it. Typically followed by 'from' plus a gerund.
Easily confused with dissuading
Dissuading means urging someone NOT to do something, while persuading means convincing them TO do something — they are near-opposites.