否认
fǒurèn · HSK 3
deny
🙅 否 (no/not) + 认 (recognize/admit) = refuse to admit = deny
否 is the negation prefix 'not/no'; 认 means 'recognize' or 'admit' (as in 认识 recognize, 承认 acknowledge). Together: not-admit = deny or disavow. Same 认 appears in 认错 (admit a mistake), so 否认 is its direct opposite.
认 — speech radical 讠 + 忍 rěn (phonetic)
认 is a semantic-phonetic compound: the speech radical 讠 (simplified from 言) signals meaning related to words or speaking, while 忍 rěn provides the sound. The traditional form 認 carried senses of 'acknowledge' or 'recognize through speech,' which extended to today's meanings of recognizing, identifying, and admitting.