repulsion

American  

[ri-puhl-shuhn] / rɪˈpʌl ʃən /

noun

1. the act of repulsing or the state of being repulsed.

2. the feeling of being repelled, as by the thought or presence of something; distaste, repugnance, or aversion.

3. Physics. the force that acts between bodies of like electric charge or magnetic polarity, tending to separate them.

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repulsion British  

/ rɪˈpʌlʃən /

noun

1. a feeling of disgust or aversion

2. physics a force tending to separate two objects, such as the force between two like electric charges or magnetic poles

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Other Word Forms

• interrepulsion noun

Etymology

Origin of repulsion

1375–1425; late Middle English < Middle French < Medieval Latin repulsiōn- (stem of Late Latin repulsiō ), equivalent to Latin repuls ( us ) ( repulse ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

Polling data backs up this anecdotal display of repulsion towards racist violence.

From Salon • Feb. 13, 2026

For Tinashe, the incongruity of being the kind of person who has their Zoom camera off a day after they sang about seduction, repulsion and red flags in front of thousands seems the entire point.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2024

As for proton trapping, the high positive charge of the W6+ dopant leads to a stronger repulsion with protons, which are also positively charged.

From Science Daily • May 29, 2024

Vanadium dioxide has strongly correlated electronic effects, meaning the repulsion between electrons interferes with the device, so cannot be ignored as is currently done in silicon-based electronics.

From Science Daily • Apr. 11, 2024

Even in regions where there were more matter particles than average, the gravitational attraction of the matter would have been outweighed by the repulsion of the effective cosmological constant.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking