repellent

Or re·pel·lant

[ri-pel-uhnt]

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.

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

/ rɪˈpɛlənt /

adjective

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

2. driving or forcing away or back; repelling

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

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of repellent¹

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

Example Sentences

It's that tension of Bunny being both repellent and relatable that gives the story its emotional punch.

Read more on BBC

Stone can play shrewd, silly, gorgeous, repellent, frail and frightening simultaneously, in a register at once intimate and grand-scale.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

As a result, public health strategies increasingly emphasize community participation, routine elimination of standing water, and the use of mosquito repellents, screens, and protective clothing to reduce the risk of infection.

Read more on Science Daily

It’s one of those characterizations that is sympathetic, repellent and consistently unnerving.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But the wonderful Mr. Kirrane makes his character so repellent you just know he’s going to meet some kind of calamity.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal