repair

[ ri-pair ]

/ rɪˈpɛər /

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See synonyms for: repair / repaired / repairing / repairs on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to restore to a good or sound condition after decay or damage; mend: to repair a motor.

to restore or renew by any process of making good, strengthening, etc.: to repair one's health by resting.

to remedy; make good; put right: to repair damage;to repair a deficiency.

to make amends for; compensate: to repair a wrong done.

noun

an act, process, or work of repairing: to order the repair of a building.

Usually repairs.

an instance or operation of repairing: to lay up a boat for repairs.
a repaired part or an addition made in repairing: Seventeenth-century repairs in brick are conspicuous in parts of the medieval stonework.

repairs, (in bookkeeping, accounting, etc.) the part of maintenance expense that has been paid out to keep fixed assets in usable condition, as distinguished from amounts used for renewal or replacement.

the good condition resulting from continued maintenance and repairing: to keep in repair.

condition with respect to soundness and usability: a house in good repair.

OTHER WORDS FOR repair

1 fix, remodel, renovate.

2 renew, rejuvenate, amend.

3 retrieve, recoup.

4 redress.

See synonyms for repair on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR repair

1 break, destroy.

See antonyms for repair on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

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Apostrophes can be tricky; prove you know the difference between "it’s" and "its" in this crafty quiz!

Question 1 of 8

On the farm, the feed for chicks is significantly different from the roosters’; ______ not even comparable.

it's

its

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Origin of repair

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English reparen, repairen, from Middle French reparer, from Latin reparāre, equivalent to re- re- + parāre to prepare; see pare

synonym study for repair

2. See renew.

OTHER WORDS FROM repair

re·pair·a·ble, adjectivere·pair·a·bil·i·ty, re·pair·a·ble·ness, nounnon·re·pair·a·ble, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH repair

reparable, repairable

Other definitions for repair (2 of 2)

repair²

[ ri-pair ]

/ rɪˈpɛər /

verb (used without object)

to betake oneself; go, as to a place: He repaired in haste to Washington.

to go frequently or customarily.

noun

a resort or haunt.

the act of going or going customarily; resort: to have repair to the country.

Scot. Obsolete. a meeting, association, or crowd of people.

Origin of repair

First recorded 1300–50; Middle English repairen, repeiren, from Old French repairier, repeirier, “to return,” from Late Latin repatriāre “to return to one's homeland”; see origin at repatriate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use repair in a sentence

After two support cables failed in recent months, the radio observatory’s 305-meter-wide dish is damaged beyond repair, the National Science Foundation announced on November 19.
Arecibo Observatory, an ‘icon of Puerto Rican science,’ will be demolished|Lisa Grossman|November 19, 2020|Science News
Even if the repairs were successful, there would be no way to guarantee long-term stability.
The second-largest radio telescope in the world is shutting down|Neel Patel|November 19, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Meanwhile, Nana estimates that the appliance repair market is a $4 billion opportunity, with some 80 million appliances in need to being serviced annually in the US.
Nana nabs $6M for an online academy and marketplace dedicated to appliance repair|Ingrid Lunden|November 12, 2020|TechCrunch
Without access to wireless data that can be used in repairs, mechanics who aren’t employed by the car’s manufacturer would be unable to repair components of the vehicle connected to remote servers.
All the ways the 2020 election has influenced science policy so far|Kate Baggaley|November 6, 2020|Popular-Science

In March, about 65 percent of city voters signed off on Measure C, a hotel-tax increase aimed at funding a Convention Center expansion, homeless initiatives and road repairs.
Demand for Housing Solutions Has Reached New Heights|Lisa Halverstadt|November 5, 2020|Voice of San Diego
The buildings under metal braces will be repaired; those jacked up with wooden planks will likely not.
Madonna, Carla Bruni & Obama Abandoned Pledges To Rebuild L'Aquila After The Quake|Barbie Latza Nadeau|November 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The result is a massive backlog of aircraft that must be repaired.
Navy Grounds Top Guns|Dave Majumdar|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Time will tell if the friendships frayed by this conflict will ever be repaired.
Summer 2014 Was the Worst Ever|Dean Obeidallah|August 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Most of these cracks had been repaired, but not to the satisfaction of Boleyn and Prouty.
The Government’s Cheap, Dishonest Campaign Against the Chinatown Bus Industry|Jim Epstein|November 2, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The shutdown is over but its harm to the military still needs to be repaired.
With the Govt Open it’s Time to Repair National Security|Andrew Borene|October 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The worst of all, however, is the hammering when the cracks in the deck are being repaired and filled up with pitch.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
I had it repaired, and take my eggs to the hatcheries and my produce to Rosewater three times a week.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
She was, however, afterwards got off the rocks and repaired, and is now a very serviceable vessel in the colony.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
Strachan departed highly elated, and repaired to a carpenter shop, where he ordered ten rough coffins made.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn
My mother's ancestors lived there; and once, when the house was being repaired, she took me in to show me the old place.
Ruth|Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell

British Dictionary definitions for repair (1 of 2)

repair¹

/ (rɪˈpɛə) /

verb (tr)

to restore (something damaged or broken) to good condition or working order

to heal (a breach or division) in (something)to repair a broken marriage

to make good or make amends for (a mistake, injury, etc)

noun

the act, task, or process of repairing

a part that has been repaired

state or conditionin good repair

Derived forms of repair

repairable, adjectiverepairer, noun

Word Origin for repair

C14: from Old French reparer, from Latin reparāre, from re- + parāre to make ready

British Dictionary definitions for repair (2 of 2)

repair²

/ (rɪˈpɛə) /

verb (intr)

(usually foll by to) to go (to a place)to repair to the country

(usually foll by to) to have recourse (to) for help, etcto repair to one's lawyer

(usually foll by from) archaic to come back; return

noun archaic

the act of going or returning

a haunt or resort

Word Origin for repair

C14: from Old French repairier, from Late Latin repatriāre to return to one's native land, from Latin re- + patria fatherland; compare repatriate

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

Medical definitions for repair

repair

[ rĭ-pâr′ ]

To restore to a healthy or functioning condition after damage or injury.

Restoration of diseased or damaged tissues naturally or by surgical means.

repair

OTHER WORDS FOR repair

OPPOSITES FOR repair

Origin of repair

synonym study for repair

OTHER WORDS FROM repair

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH repair

Other definitions for repair (2 of 2)

Origin of repair

Words related to repair

How to use repair in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for repair (1 of 2)

Derived forms of repair

Word Origin for repair

British Dictionary definitions for repair (2 of 2)

Word Origin for repair

Medical definitions for repair