repatriation

noun

re·​pa·​tri·​a·​tion (ˌ)rē-ˌpā-trē-ˈā-shən 

-ˌpa-

plural repatriations

: the act or process of restoring or returning someone or something to the country of origin, allegiance, or citizenship : the act of repatriating or the state of being repatriated

While officials privately acknowledge there is scant legal basis for repatriation, their public statements suggest that they would use lawsuits, diplomatic pressure and shame to bring home looted objects—not unlike Italy, Greece and Egypt, which have sought, with some success, to recover antiquities in European and American museums.

—Andrew Jacobs

They say they have that right under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which requires that human remains and artifacts be returned to Indian tribes that can show a cultural link.

—Timothy Egan

This left him an illegal immigrant in Hong Kong, subject to arrest and repatriation at any time.

—Nicholas D. Kristof

Examples of repatriation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Monday’s deal saw the return of 20 living Israeli hostages and the beginning of the repatriation of the bodies of the 28 dead captives who were held in Gaza during the devastating war as part of a ceasefire deal that, at press time, appeared to be holding. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 16 Oct. 2025

Medical evacuation/repatriation (including mortal remains). —Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 10 Oct. 2025

Rami returned to Haifa, under the Abu Sitta repatriation program adopted by the new national assembly in the summer of 2041. —Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025

Total repatriations When examining total repatriations — people returned to their country of origin — a more ambiguous picture emerges. —Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 25 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1592, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for repatriation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration