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repel

re·pel

UK/ɹɪˈpɛl/ US/rɪˈpɛl/ uncommon archaic

verb

1.

cause to move back by force or influence

  • “repel the enemy”
  • “push back the urge to smoke”
  • “beat back the invaders”
Synonyms
Antonyms
2.

feel bitter or indignant about

  • “She resents being paid less than her co-workers”
Synonyms
Antonyms
3.

force or drive back

  • “repel the attacker”
  • “fight off the onslaught”
  • “rebuff the attack”
Synonyms
4.

reject outright and bluntly

  • “She snubbed his proposal”
Synonyms
5.

fill with distaste

  • “This spoilt food disgusts me”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English repellen, a borrowing from Old French *repeller, from Latin repellere (“to drive back”), from re- (“back”) + pellere (“to drive”). Doublet of repeal.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.