A disavow file is a text file that contains a list of URLs or domains that a website owner or SEO specialist wants to disavow or distance themselves from in terms of search engine optimization (SEO).

The disavow file is used by website owners to tell search engines like Google not to count certain backlinks to their website when calculating search engine rankings. Backlinks are links from other websites that point to a website, and they are one of the factors that search engines use to determine the relevance and authority of a website.

The disavow file can be submitted to Google and other search engines through their webmaster tools or search console. By using a disavow file, website owners can avoid being penalized by search engines for low-quality or spammy backlinks that could negatively impact their search engine rankings.