repel

[ri-pel] /rɪˈpɛl/
verb (used with object), repelled, repelling.
1.
to drive or force back (an assailant, invader, etc.).
2.
to thrust back or away.
3.
to resist effectively (an attack, onslaught, etc.).
4.
to keep off or out; fail to mix with:
Water and oil repel each other.
5.
to resist the absorption or passage of (water or other liquid):
This coat repels rain.
6.
to refuse to have to do with; resist involvement in:
to repel temptation.
7.
to refuse to accept or admit; reject:
to repel a suggestion.
8.
to discourage the advances of (a person):
He repelled me with his harshness.
9.
to cause distaste or aversion in:
Their untidy appearance repelled us.
10.
to push back or away by a force, as one body acting upon another (opposed to attract):
The north pole of one magnet will repel the north pole of another.
verb (used without object), repelled, repelling.
11.
to act with a force that drives or keeps away something.
12.
to cause distaste or aversion.
Origin
1350-1400; Middle English repellen < Latin repellere to drive back, equivalent to re- re- + pellere to drive, push; see repulse
Related forms
repellence, repellency, noun
repeller, noun
repellingly, adverb
repellingness, noun
nonrepellence, noun
nonrepellency, noun
nonrepeller, noun
self-repellency, noun
unrepelled, adjective
Synonyms
1. repulse, parry, ward off. 3. withstand, oppose, rebuff. 7. decline, rebuff.
Antonyms
1. attract.
Examples from the web for repel
  • They may smell pleasant to us, but the plants make them to repel their mortal enemies.
  • Some of these soaps can also be used in the garden to repel insects.
  • The same principle is probably what helps them repel water.
  • It seeks to repel enemies with a painful energy beam.
  • If you are looking for a chemical-free way to repel mosquitoes, you may already have the solution in your home.
  • Stairwells are pressurised to repel smoke and entered only through air-lock-style vestibules.
  • At that point, the electrons at the surface of your fingers repel the electrons on either side of the page.
  • Moreover, positrons carry electric charge and naturally repel each other.
  • Seems to neither consistently attract nor repel them.
  • One day a domestic version might even repel burglars.
British Dictionary definitions for repel

repel

/rɪˈpɛl/
verb (mainly transitive) -pels, -pelling, -pelled
1.
to force or drive back (something or somebody, esp an attacker)
2.
(also intransitive) to produce a feeling of aversion or distaste in (someone or something); be disgusting (to)
3.
to push aside; dismiss: he repelled the suggestion as wrong and impossible
4.
to be effective in keeping away, controlling, or resisting: an aerosol spray that repels flies
5.
to have no affinity for; fail to mix with or absorb: water and oil repel each other
6.
to disdain to accept (something); turn away from or spurn: she repelled his advances
7.
(also intransitive) to exert an opposing force on (something): an electric charge repels another charge of the same sign
Derived Forms
repeller, noun
repulse
Word Origin
C15: from Latin repellere, from re- + pellere to push, drive
Word Origin and History for repel
v.

early 15c., "to drive away, remove," from Old French repeller or directly from Latin repellere "to drive back," from re- "back" (see re-) + pellere "to drive, strike" (see pulse (n.1)). Meaning "to affect (a person) with distaste or aversion" is from 1817. Related: Repelled; repelling.