repellent

American  

[ri-pel-uhnt] / rɪˈpɛl ənt /

Or repellant

adjective

1. causing distaste or aversion; repulsive.

   Synonyms:

   loathsome, distasteful, disgusting, repugnant

2. forcing or driving back.

3. serving or tending to ward off or drive away.

4. impervious or resistant to something (often used in combination).

   moth-repellant.

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noun

1. something that repels, as a substance that keeps away insects.

2. a medicine that serves to prevent or reduce swellings, tumors, etc.

3. any of various durable or nondurable solutions applied to a fabric, garment, surface, etc., to increase its resistance, as to water, moths, mildew, etc.

repellent British  

/ rɪˈpɛlənt /

adjective

1. giving rise to disgust or aversion; distasteful or repulsive

2. driving or forcing away or back; repelling

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noun

1. something, esp a chemical substance, that repels

   insect repellent

2. a substance with which fabrics are treated to increase their resistance to water

Other Word Forms

• interrepellent adjective
• nonrepellent adjective
• repellence noun
• repellently adverb
• self-repellent adjective
• unrepellent adjective
• unrepellently adverb

Etymology

Origin of repellent

1635–45; < Latin repellent- (stem of repellēns ), present participle of repellere to drive back. See repel, -ent

Example Sentences

People should also consider using DEET-containing repellent on exposed skin and turning off personal water features such as decorative fountains for 24 hours once a week, according to the district.

From Los Angeles Times

But even making my feet move felt repellent, and halfway into the song, he mentioned that he had a cousin named August who was over in France.

From Literature

The new findings suggest that ultrasonic repellents might be used to discourage hedgehogs from entering roads and other dangerous areas.

From Science Daily

"It's amazing because this allows us to actually build targeted sound repellents that wouldn't bother us or our pets," she says.

From BBC

Even though most of the moisture from the recent rains has begun to dry up, experts say, it doesn’t hurt to apply insect repellent when outdoors.

From Los Angeles Times