repatriate

verb

re·​pa·​tri·​ate (ˌ)rē-ˈpā-trē-ˌāt 

-ˈpa-

repatriated; repatriating

transitive verb

: to restore or return to the country of origin, allegiance, or citizenship

repatriate prisoners of war

repatriate

(ˌ)rē-ˈpā-trē-ət 

-trē-ˌāt

-ˈpa-

noun

Examples of repatriate in a Sentence

Countries are required to repatriate prisoners of war when conflict has ended.

Recent Examples on the Web

On Friday, prosecutors requested that a judge dismiss the case, writing that upon being released on bond earlier Friday, he was detained on civil immigration violations and repatriated to Mexico. —Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 July 2025

According to the main Ukrainian authority dealing with such swaps, no date had been set for repatriating the bodies. —Arkansas Online, 9 June 2025

And to ensure that foreign profits that had not yet been taxed didn't completely escape tax, the new law imposed a tax on existing foreign profits that had not yet been repatriated. —Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 14 May 2025

The renovation, which cost seventy million dollars, began in 2021, as a global campaign to decolonize Western museums was prompting some institutions to repatriate looted objects, and others to engage in tortured self-critique. —Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 30 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin repatriatus, past participle of repatriare to go home again — more at repair entry 3

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for repatriate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

repatriate

1 of 2 verb

re·​pa·​tri·​ate

(ˈ)rē-ˈpā-trē-ˌāt,

-ˈpa-

repatriated; repatriating

: to return to the country of origin, allegiance, or citizenship

repatriate prisoners of war

repatriation

(ˌ)rē-ˌpā-trē-ˈā-shən

-ˌpa-

noun

repatriate

2 of 2 noun

re·​pa·​tri·​ate

(ˈ)rē-ˈpā-trē-ət,

-tre-ˌāt

: one that is repatriated