repugnant

[ri-puhg-nuhnt]

adjective

1. distasteful, objectionable, or offensive.

   a repugnant smell.

2. making opposition; averse.

3. opposed or contrary, as in nature or character.

   Synonyms: hostile, adverse, antagonistic

repugnant

/ rɪˈpʌɡnənt /

adjective

1. repellent to the senses; causing aversion

2. distasteful; offensive; disgusting

3. contradictory; inconsistent or incompatible

Other Word Forms

• repugnantly adverb
• unrepugnant adjective
• unrepugnantly adverb
• repugnance noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of repugnant¹

1350–1400; Middle English repugnaunt < Middle French < Latin repugnant- (stem of repugnāns, present participle of repugnāre ), equivalent to repugn ( āre ) to repugn + -ant- -ant

Word History and Origins

Origin of repugnant¹

C14: from Latin repugnāns resisting; see _repugn

Example Sentences

The network's use of "Big Lie," he said, was a "deliberate effort by CNN to propagate to its audience an association between the plaintiff and one of the most repugnant figures in modern history."

Read more on Barron's

But some conceits stampede through profoundly repugnant swamplands, sinking into straight-up stereotyping in the process.

Read more on Salon

Some might find “Anniversary” too vague: What, precisely, is Liz’s political stance that makes her so powerful and so repugnant to Ellen?

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The 10-point “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” promises benefits including federal grants to universities that sign on to a list of changes in behavior, many of which are repugnant.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Members of the local Jewish community have strongly condemned her actions, with one of the people who challenged her at the time describing them as "morally repugnant".

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• abhorrent 
• abominable 
• contradictory 
• disgusting 
• distasteful 
• incompatible 
• objectionable 
• odious 
• revolting 
• vile