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

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

From BBC

Within weeks, Pablo Picasso’s painting “Guernica” was on public display, boosting global revulsion at such barbarism.

From Salon

Widespread revulsion at his return to power clearly shifted the electoral winds in Canada, Australia and Germany.

From Salon

The pair, whose friendship imploded in the aftermath as the public revulsion became clear to them, drove to the site under the cover of darkness in the early hours of 28 September 2023.

From BBC

And the teenage provocateur made no secret of that revulsion, loudly belittling his fellow students.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

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