repel
to drive or force back (an assailant, invader, etc.).
to thrust back or away.
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.
to refuse to accept or admit; reject: to repel a suggestion.
to discourage the advances of (a person): He repelled me with his harshness.
to cause distaste or aversion in: Their untidy appearance repelled us.
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.
to act with a force that drives or keeps away something.
to cause distaste or aversion.
Origin of repel
1Other words for repel
Opposites for repel
Other words from repel
- 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
Words Nearby repel
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use repel in a sentence
The cycle continued in the 1980s after the Soviet invasion and America’s support of militias to repel Moscow.
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.
For her to field those lightning strikes of abuse and repel them with her own agency is a superhero display of its own.
The 2021 Olympics Are an Inspiring, Infuriating Shitshow | Kevin Fallon | July 30, 2021 | The Daily BeastThis 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.
The US military wants force fields that could stop nuclear missiles | Rob Verger | July 29, 2021 | Popular-ScienceThey couldn’t be 100% effective because they were just repelling them once they were there.
This Little Tool Has Killed All of the Mosquitos in My Yard | Daniel Modlin | May 21, 2021 | The Daily Beast
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.
The Paper Tiger of the Tigris: How ISIS Took Tikrit Without a Fight | Andrew Slater | June 29, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTScuffles 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.
The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness | Florence HartleyThey were ready to adopt the most energetic measures to repel the interference of this armed confederacy.
Madame Roland, Makers of History | John S. C. AbbottDouglas was advancing to repel the assailants when he was informed of the force in rear, and instantly drew back his men.
King Robert the Bruce | A. F. MurisonThe men of his company, roaring curses at the Frenchmen, prepare to receive and repel a thundering charge of French cuirassiers.
Little Travels and Roadside Sketches | William Makepeace ThackerayAn always wrathful God would repel His worshipers, or cast them into despair.
Superstition In All Ages (1732) | Jean Meslier
British Dictionary definitions for repel
/ (rɪˈpɛl) /
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)
to push aside; dismiss: he repelled the suggestion as wrong and impossible
to be effective in keeping away, controlling, or resisting: an aerosol spray that repels flies
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
(also intr) to exert an opposing force on (something): an electric charge repels another charge of the same sign
Origin of repel
1repel
Derived forms of repel
- repeller, noun
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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