repellent
pronunciation
How to pronounce repellent in British English:
UK [rɪˈpelənt]
How to pronounce repellent in American English:
US [rɪˈpɛlənt]
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- Noun:
- a compound with which fabrics are treated to repel water
- a chemical substance that repels animals
- the power to repel
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- Adjective:
- serving or tending to repel
- highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust
- incapable of absorbing or mixing with
Word Origin
- repellent (adj.)
- also repellant, 1640s, from Latin repellentem (nominative repelens), present participle of repellere (see repel). Originally of medicines (that reduced tumors); meaning "distasteful, disagreeable" first recorded 1797.
- repellent (n.)
- also repellant, 1660s, "medicine that reduces tumors," from repellent (adj.). As "substance that repels insects," 1908.
Example
- 1. You can make natural insect repellent yourself .
- 2. Health officials started fogging , distributing larvicide and bug repellent , and scouting for standing water .
- 3. So far , no one has devised a widely accepted reason why dark energy exists . Nor has anyone figured out why it acts as a repellent .
- 4. It was first used as a pesticide and later used by soldiers as a repellent in 1946 . It was released for civilian usage in 1957 .
- 5. It is proven to be a medicinal wonder , as well as a metal polisher and an insect repellent .