repetition
Americannoun
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the act of repeating, or doing, saying, or writing something again; repeated action, performance, production, or presentation.
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repeated utterance; reiteration.
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something made by or resulting from repeating.
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a reproduction, copy, or replica.
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Civil Law. an action or demand for the recovery of a payment or delivery made by error or upon failure to fulfill a condition.
noun
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the act or an instance of repeating; reiteration
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a thing, word, action, etc, that is repeated
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a replica or copy
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civil law Scots law the recovery or repayment of money paid or received by mistake, as when the same bill has been paid twice
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of repetition
1375–1425; late Middle English (< Old French repeticion ) < Latin repetītiōn- (stem of repetītiō ), equivalent to repetīt ( us ) (past participle of repetere to repeat ) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
Use the noun repetition to describe something that is repeated over and over, like the repetition of singing the alphabet song several times a day to help young children learn the letters. To correctly pronounce repetition, accent the third syllable: "re-peh-TIH-shun." Repetition and the closely related repeat come from the Latin word repetere, meaning "do or say again." It can be a very effective tool in public speaking, such as the repetition of "I have a dream that one day . . ." in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous speech.
Vocabulary lists containing repetition
Literary Devices & Figures of Speech - Introductory
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Poetry: Literary Devices
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AP English Lit exam terms
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Repetition and ritual are paths to enlightenment in Mr. Morby’s songs, and the quietly powerful “Little Wide Open” is filled with earned wisdom.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026
Repetition often arrives quietly during periods of grief, or intense work, or winter or caretaking — times when energy is being spent elsewhere, often invisibly.
From Salon • Jan. 31, 2026
Repetition as a promotional strategy is nothing new, but on TikTok Shop it feels like a form of psychological warfare.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 3, 2023
Repetition has been a time-tested strategy for politicians of all stripes and throughout the ages.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 3, 2023
Repetition had wrung from Clement’s speech any controversy it might have once contained.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
