Definition of REPULSE

Examples of repulse in a Sentence

Verb The troops repulsed the attack. I was repulsed by the movie's violence. The moldy bread repulsed him. He repulsed all attempts to help him. Noun the waiter's incredibly rude repulse of our polite request for a better table—one that wasn't right next to the kitchen—prompted us to walk out

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb In 1775, during the Revolutionary War, the British repulsed an attack by Continental Army generals Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold at Quebec; Montgomery was killed. — BostonGlobe.com, "This day in history," 31 Dec. 2019 Many of the millions of Americans with Scottish ancestry have happily settled for an increasingly wide array of lung-less haggis (or, repulsed by the thought of eating sheep innards, avoided the dish entirely). — David Yaffe-bellany, New York Times, "Building the Perfect Meal With Sheep Lungs and a Suitcase," 24 Jan. 2020 Howard is a fast-talking wheeler-dealer and compulsive gambler who thoroughly repulses almost everyone in his life, but who quickly and easily earns viewers’ affection through Sandlerian charm. — Tyler Aquilina, EW.com, "Adam Sandler’s classic comedies prove he’s a great dramatic actor: Opinion," 29 Dec. 2019 But Yang’s dual role as presidential candidate and Knicks-basher has attracted special attention from fans, with some repulsed and others nodding in agreement. — NBC News, "Yang interview: What's wrong with the NY Knicks is what's wrong with America," 24 Oct. 2019 Thousands of migrants are stuck in northwestern Bosnia, unable to continue their trek north through neighboring Croatia whose police have been accused of violently repulsing migrants caught trying to illegally cross the border. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Water cut to migrant camp as Bosnian authorities feud," 21 Oct. 2019 This much the Japanese might have expected: Midway’s defending Marines had repulsed five lighter attacks. — Olivia B. Waxman, Time, "The Real World War II History Behind the Movie Midway," 8 Nov. 2019 Starting in the brutal Middle Ages as a fortress to repulse attacks by the rival Orsini family, the palace grew slowly. — Jason Horowitz, Town & Country, "Inside Palazzo Colonna, Rome's Last Great Sanctuary of Renaissance Splendor," 24 Sep. 2019 When someone who once smelled like home suddenly repulses you with his lack of a feces scent? — Cirocco Dunlap, The New Yorker, "The Metamorphosis: Millennial Edition," 9 Sep. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Yet Mr Trump’s decision to change course represents neither a disastrous retreat nor a major moral repulse. — The Economist, "A blot against America," 23 June 2018 After another great inwash of Hispanics, peaking during the late 1990s at around 750,000 arrivals a year, a repulse was inevitable. — The Economist, "LexingtonHostility to immigration used to be found in both parties," 18 Jan. 2018 Fog stalled airborne reinforcements to British forces at Arnhem in 1944, contributing to the German repulse of a major Allied initiative. — Victor Davis Hanson, National Review, "The Deadly Cost of Mutual Misunderstanding," 18 Oct. 2017 Valerian wheezes to a close and then gives us a sloppy, oafish grin, one that, much like an ugly dog, both endears and repulses. — Jillian Selzer, Cosmopolitan, "The 12 Meanest Things Critics Are Saying About Valerian," 24 July 2017 Valerian wheezes to a close and then gives us a sloppy, oafish grin, one that, much like an ugly dog, both endears and repulses. — Jillian Selzer, Cosmopolitan, "The 12 Meanest Things Critics Are Saying About Valerian," 24 July 2017 Valerian wheezes to a close and then gives us a sloppy, oafish grin, one that, much like an ugly dog, both endears and repulses. — Richard Lawson, HWD, "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets Is an Endearing, Eye-Popping Mess," 18 July 2017 Valerian wheezes to a close and then gives us a sloppy, oafish grin, one that, much like an ugly dog, both endears and repulses. — Richard Lawson, vanityfair.com, "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets Is an Endearing, Eye-Popping Mess," 18 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'repulse.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for repulse

Verb

Middle English repulsen "to hold back, drive away," probably in part borrowed from Latin repulsus, past participle of repellere "to push away, drive back, fend off," in part borrowed from Middle French repulser "to drive back, put an end to," borrowed from Latin repulsāre "to drive back, repudiate," frequentative of repellere — more at repel

Noun

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, "action of pushing back, rejection," borrowed in part from Latin repulsa "electoral defeat, check, rebuff" (noun derivative from feminine of repulsus, past participle of repellere "to push away, drive back, fend off"), in part from repulsus "action of forcing back," verbal noun from repellere — more at repel

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