repeats; repeated; repeating
1
a
: to say (something) again
Will you repeat the question?
He kept repeating the same thing over and over.
He often has to ask people to repeat themselves because he's a little deaf.
The group's message is one that bears repeating. [=is important enough to state more than once]
—sometimes used in speech to emphasize a word or phrase"There are five—(I) repeat—five ways to do this."
b
: to say (something) after someone else has said it
Repeat after me: "I promise to do my best…"
You are simply repeating, in slightly different words, what has been said already.
2
: to say (something that you have memorized) : recite
My five-year-old can repeat her favorite stories word for word.
3
: to tell (something that you have heard) to someone else
Please don't repeat what I've told you (to anyone).
4
a
: to make, do, or achieve (something) again
The doctors had to repeat the operation.
We need to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.
I'm not so sure the team can repeat the success they had last season.
I had trouble in school when I was young and had to repeat (the) third grade. [=I had to stay in the third grade for another year]
She's been absent so much that she is going to have to repeat her sophomore year.
They won the championship last year. Will history repeat itself this year? [=will the same thing happen again?; will they win the championship again this year?]
(US)
They're trying to repeat as champions this year. [=to win the championship again after winning it last year]
b
: to present (something) again
The workshop will be repeated in the fall.
The radio station broadcasts the show live on Saturday mornings, and then repeats it on Wednesday nights.
5
: to begin again
The cycle repeats every 24 hours.
The pattern on the wallpaper repeats every foot or so.
plural repeats
1
a
: an occurrence in which something happens or is done again
—usually + of
We're hoping to avoid a repeat of last year's budget problems.
b
: something that happens or is done again
—usually used before another noun
a repeat win
The company gets a lot of repeat business. [=business from customers who have bought something from the company before]
c
: someone who does something again
Most of the customers are repeats.
—usually used before another nounrepeat customers
There are tougher penalties for repeat offenders. [=people who have committed a crime more than once]
2
: a radio or television show that is broadcast again
No, I don't want to watch that. It's a repeat.
3
music
: a section of music that is repeated
also
: the symbol in written music that shows that a section should be repeated
Cite this Entry
“Repeat.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/repeat. Accessed 18 Apr. 2026.
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