Which word means 'to free someone from a mistaken belief'?

• A. Dirge
• B. Diatribe
• C. Disabuse
• D. Desiccate

Answer: (C)

Disabuse is the act of freeing someone from a mistaken belief or false notion. It carries the sense of correcting misinformation and guiding someone toward a more accurate understanding. You might hear it in phrases like “disabuse someone of the idea that…,” as in a teacher or friend correcting a common myth. For example, “The instructor disabused the students of the belief that the Earth is flat.” The other words don’t fit: a dirge is a mournful song for the dead, a diatribe is a bitter, harsh critique, and desiccate means to remove moisture or to become dry and uninteresting.