repel
Americanverb (used with object)
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repels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
repelled,
past participle, past
-
repelling
present participle
-
to drive or force back (an assailant, invader, etc.).
- Antonyms:
- attract
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to thrust back or away.
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to resist effectively (an attack, onslaught, etc.).
-
to keep off or out; fail to mix with.
Water and oil repel each other.
-
to resist the absorption or passage of (water or other liquid).
This coat repels rain.
-
to refuse to have to do with; resist involvement in.
to repel temptation.
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to refuse to accept or admit; reject.
to repel a suggestion.
-
to discourage the advances of (a person).
He repelled me with his harshness.
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to cause distaste or aversion in.
Their untidy appearance repelled us.
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to push back or away by a force, as one body acting upon another (opposed to attract).
The north pole of one magnet will repel the north pole of another.
verb (used without object)
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repels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
repelled,
past participle, past
-
repelling
present participle
-
to act with a force that drives or keeps away something.
-
to cause distaste or aversion.
verb
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to force or drive back (something or somebody, esp an attacker)
-
(also intr) to produce a feeling of aversion or distaste in (someone or something); be disgusting (to)
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to push aside; dismiss
he repelled the suggestion as wrong and impossible
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to be effective in keeping away, controlling, or resisting
an aerosol spray that repels flies
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to have no affinity for; fail to mix with or absorb
water and oil repel each other
-
to disdain to accept (something); turn away from or spurn
she repelled his advances
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(also intr) to exert an opposing force on (something)
an electric charge repels another charge of the same sign
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonrepellencenoun
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nonrepellencynoun
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nonrepellernoun
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repellencenoun
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repellencynoun
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repellernoun
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repellingnessnoun
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self-repellencynoun
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unrepelledadjective
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repellinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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repelsimple
-
repelssimple
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have repelledperfect
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has repelledperfect
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am repellingprogressive
-
are repellingprogressive
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is repellingprogressive
-
have been repellingperfect progressive
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has been repellingperfect progressive
Past
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repelledsimple
-
had repelledperfect
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was repellingprogressive
-
were repellingprogressive
-
had been repellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of repel
1350–1400; Middle English repellen < Latin repellere to drive back, equivalent to re- re- + pellere to drive, push; see repulse
Explanation
Use the verb repel when you want to turn something away. You might drench yourself in bug spray to repel the mosquitoes that plague you when you go camping. This versatile word can be used in relation to everything from bugs to unwanted romantic advances. The word repel can be used to describe the act of driving something away, as in the case of bugs or other pesky critters, including potential suitors. It can also be used to describe something that causes disgust or distaste. For example, the thought of eating snails might repel you.
Vocabulary lists containing repel
Electricity and Magnetism - Introductory
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Physics - Introductory
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
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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.
See Examples For:
Within months, these fighters—often traveling in Toyota Land Cruisers and supported by helicopter gunships—managed to repel rebels from taking over the capital of the mineral-rich nation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Drone strikes beyond the battlefield pump up market for technology to repel them.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 18, 2026
That ability to repel opposition players has become a trademark move.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
U.S. special forces have been training Mexican military teams to repel attacks at stadiums.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2026
They came now to my side, cloths wrapped about their faces to repel the contagion.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
In one part of the conveyor system, a vibrating panel called an eddy current creates a sort of reverse magnet that repels nonferrous materials like aluminum beverage cans into their own collection area.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
This protein acts as a guidance signal that repels growing nerve fibers, preventing them from entering sensitive regions of the spine.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 23, 2026
As an adult, I’ve tried to will myself back into enthrallment with this plucky heroine who repels a scary hobo, bravely goes without food and saves a poor Italian immigrant when others are against her.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
In the northern Danish city of Aalborg, the firm MyDefence makes equipment that jams and repels drones.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2025
Manticore skin repels almost all known charms and the sting causes instant death.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
The expectation repelled many Americans while the reality proved underwhelming.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
They were briefly repelled by a security guard, who along with two other victims in the parking lot, alerted people at the center and police to the attack, saving lives.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026
“The country seems to have become somewhat frozen in time after the liberation,” said Edward “Skip” Gnehm Jr., who was U.S. ambassador when the invasion was repelled and continued to visit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
Cokayne's brave turnover, clamping down in the shadow of her own posts, repelled that attack.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
She was not repelled by the room as I was.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
But streaming distribution doesn’t matter if you’re still producing the same old content that’s repelling viewers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
If elected, Wadagni is expected to be able to count on the loyalty of the army, which played a decisive role in repelling an attempted coup against Talon in December.
From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026
At the heart of it all was the magnificent Gabriel, repelling all Brighton's borders and marshalling resources with his outstanding central defensive partner William Saliba missing through injury.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2026
The rod-shaped CSV nanocrystals improve how well the perovskite precursor spreads across the typically water repelling SAM surface, allowing for more uniform coverage.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 1, 2026
The rebels, brilliantly led by Major General Richard “Fighting Dick” Anderson, hold fast, repelling each and every charge.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
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.
