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View synonyms for repel

repel

[ ri-pel ]

verb (used with object)

, re·pelled, re·pel·ling.
  1. to drive or force back (an assailant, invader, etc.).

    Synonyms: parry, repulse

    Antonyms: attract

  2. to thrust back or away.
  3. to resist effectively (an attack, onslaught, etc.).

    Synonyms: rebuff, oppose, withstand

  4. to keep off or out; fail to mix with:

    Water and oil repel each other.

  5. to resist the absorption or passage of (water or other liquid):

    This coat repels rain.

  6. to refuse to have to do with; resist involvement in:

    to repel temptation.

  7. to refuse to accept or admit; reject:

    to repel a suggestion.

    Synonyms: rebuff, decline

  8. to discourage the advances of (a person):

    He repelled me with his harshness.

  9. to cause distaste or aversion in:

    Their untidy appearance repelled us.

  10. to push back or away by a force, as one body acting upon another ( attract ):

    The north pole of one magnet will repel the north pole of another.



verb (used without object)

, re·pelled, re·pel·ling.
  1. to act with a force that drives or keeps away something.
  2. to cause distaste or aversion.

repel

/ rɪˈpɛl /

verb

  1. to force or drive back (something or somebody, esp an attacker)
  2. also intr to produce a feeling of aversion or distaste in (someone or something); be disgusting (to)
  3. to push aside; dismiss

    he repelled the suggestion as wrong and impossible

  4. to be effective in keeping away, controlling, or resisting

    an aerosol spray that repels flies

  5. to have no affinity for; fail to mix with or absorb

    water and oil repel each other

  6. to disdain to accept (something); turn away from or spurn

    she repelled his advances

  7. also intr to exert an opposing force on (something)

    an electric charge repels another charge of the same sign

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Usage

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Derived Forms

  • reˈpeller, noun
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Other Words From

  • re·pellence re·pellen·cy noun
  • re·peller noun
  • re·pelling·ly adverb
  • re·pelling·ness noun
  • nonre·pellence noun
  • nonre·pellen·cy noun
  • nonre·peller noun
  • self-re·pellen·cy noun
  • unre·pelled adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of repel1

1350–1400; Middle English repellen < Latin repellere to drive back, equivalent to re- re- + pellere to drive, push; repulse
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Word History and Origins

Origin of repel1

C15: from Latin repellere , from re- + pellere to push, drive
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Example Sentences

The cycle continued in the 1980s after the Soviet invasion and America’s support of militias to repel Moscow.

From Ozy

On CNN, someone was questioning whether the police had used sufficient force to repel the rioters, asking why they hadn’t arrested more people on the scene.

From Time

For her to field those lightning strikes of abuse and repel them with her own agency is a superhero display of its own.

This spectrally precise effect can be thought of as creating a force field that repels crowds around an embassy, base, port, or other high value location.

They couldn’t be 100% effective because they were just repelling them once they were there.

The only exception is military action to repel an imminent attack.

Bieber now knows his perfect body is no longer the weaponry with which to repel his bad press.

It was easy to imagine that the landscape was actively trying to repel us.

On paper, the forces in Tikrit should have been more than adequate to repel even a force of this size.

Scuffles broke out with riot police, who used pepper spray to repel party members wielding Greek flags on thick wooden sticks.

A dignified, modest reserve is the surest way to repel impertinence.

They were ready to adopt the most energetic measures to repel the interference of this armed confederacy.

Douglas was advancing to repel the assailants when he was informed of the force in rear, and instantly drew back his men.

The men of his company, roaring curses at the Frenchmen, prepare to receive and repel a thundering charge of French cuirassiers.

An always wrathful God would repel His worshipers, or cast them into despair.

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