revulsion

[ri-vuhl-shuhn]

noun

1. a strong feeling of repugnance, distaste, or dislike.

   Cruelty fills me with revulsion.

   Synonyms: aversion, loathing, repulsion, disgust

2. a sudden and violent change of feeling or response in sentiment, taste, etc.

3. the act of drawing something back or away.

4. the fact of being so drawn.

5. Medicine/Medical.,  the diminution of morbid action in one part of the body by irritation in another.

revulsion

/ rɪˈvʌlʃən /

noun

1. a sudden and unpleasant violent reaction in feeling, esp one of extreme loathing

2. the act or an instance of drawing back or recoiling from something

3. obsolete,  the diversion of disease or congestion from one part of the body to another by cupping, counterirritants, etc

Other Word Forms

• revulsionary adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of revulsion¹

1535–45; < Latin revulsiōn- (stem of revulsiō ) a tearing away, equivalent to revuls ( us ) (past participle of revellere to tear away, equivalent to re- re- + vellere to pluck) + -iōn- -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of revulsion¹

C16: from Latin revulsiō a pulling away, from revellere , from _re- + vellere to pull, tear

Example Sentences

It’s such a humble invitation, almost an afterthought, and yet it’s the first time anyone in the story has offered The Creature anything without fear or revulsion.

Read more on Salon

One man, Garfield, has chosen virtue; another, Conkling, has chosen corruption; the third, Guiteau, has no real choice in the matter but keeps an audience teetering between pity and revulsion.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

More a conscious repining at their existence, mixed with revulsion at the thought that she occasionally had to share space with them.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"Any decent person... will experience shock, revulsion and incredulity."

Read more on BBC

But public revulsion at their attack appears to have forced the criminals to backtrack.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• disgust 
• dislike 
• distaste 
• hatred 
• horror 
• loathing 
• repulsion