hydrophobic
adjective
hy·dro·pho·bic
ˌhī-drə-ˈfō-bik 
1
: of, relating to, or suffering from hydrophobia
2
: lacking affinity for water
Examples of hydrophobic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Like the beetle's wings, the mesh filaments are chemically coated to be either hydrophobic or hydrophilic.
—
Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 13 June 2025
The scales are hydrophobic enough to make water droplets bead up — but hydrophilic enough to keep them from rolling right off the reptiles.
—Jason Bittel, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2025
The latter, hydrophobic side can hook into, and then destroy, the membranes that surround some microbes (though norovirus isn’t one of them).
—Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 14 Jan. 2025
On top of the blade laying down small bits of silicone—which is inherently hydrophobic—Michelin has treated the wiper with four layers of its hydrophobic coating to improve clearing ability before the wiper is even engaged.
—Matt Crisara, Popular Mechanics, 12 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for hydrophobic
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 13 June 2025
The scales are hydrophobic enough to make water droplets bead up — but hydrophilic enough to keep them from rolling right off the reptiles.
—Jason Bittel, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2025
The latter, hydrophobic side can hook into, and then destroy, the membranes that surround some microbes (though norovirus isn’t one of them).
—Daniel Engber, The Atlantic, 14 Jan. 2025
On top of the blade laying down small bits of silicone—which is inherently hydrophobic—Michelin has treated the wiper with four layers of its hydrophobic coating to improve clearing ability before the wiper is even engaged.
—Matt Crisara, Popular Mechanics, 12 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for hydrophobic
Cite this Entry
“Hydrophobic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hydrophobic. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
hydrophobic
adjective
hy·dro·pho·bic
-ˈfō-bik
1
: of, relating to, or suffering from hydrophobia
2
: resistant to or avoiding wetting
a hydrophobic lens
3
: of, relating to, or having a lack of affinity for water
hydrophobic colloids are relatively unstable
compare lyophobic, oleophobic
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share