repellent

adjective

ri-ˈpe-lənt How to pronounce repellent (audio)
variants also repellant
Definition of repellentnext
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment your snobbish behavior towards my friends is so repellent I can't stand to be around you anymore

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of repellent While there’s evidence that some plant extracts may have repellant properties, that doesn’t mean lining your deck with these plants will work. — Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 3 July 2026 Mosquito-repellent stickers, sprays and rodent repellent pouches designed to help protect both your home and outdoor spaces. — ABC News, 2 July 2026 For tick prevention, Hayes recommends long pants tucked into socks, duct tape wrapped sticky-side out around the ankle, and chemical repellents over essential-oil products — pointing readers to the EPA’s repellent search engine to find effective options. — Charlotte Observer, 19 June 2026 To be clear, this isn’t a repellent but actually an insecticide. — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 3 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for repellent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for repellent
  1. disgusting
  2. ugly
  3. awful
  4. horrible
  5. sickening
  6. obnoxious
  7. hideous
  8. shocking
Adjective
  • This whole situation is discriminatory, disgusting, and quite frankly, Orwellian.
    — Jon Root OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Aug. 2026
  • That it’s populated with disgusting creatures and monsters, Jackson’s forté, doesn’t hurt.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of disgusting
Adjective
  • The animation is truly ugly, the characters moving at the framerate of a PowerPoint and looking less like the animals they’re supposed to be than weird hybrid troll creatures.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The wrong paint color, outdated furniture, and yes, even an ugly light fixture could be aging your home and (ugh) majorly cramping its style.
    — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of ugly
Adjective
  • The disease still makes lots of people feel awful for a week or two, foiling their summer vacations and forcing them to miss work and school.
    — Rob Stein, NPR, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Singing in the shower, gardening, baking, and writing poetry (yes, even awful poetry) are all good options.
    — Laura Bradley, HEALTH, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of awful
Adjective
  • Whatever cloud of innocence has hung over Jo’s life until this point is shattered, both parents struggling how to navigate the horrible experience from an emotional as well as a purely bureaucratic perspective.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 11 Aug. 2026
  • After years of seeing enough photos of fabulous wealth and horrible tragedy, these types of images cease to shock us.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of horrible
Adjective
  • Wildlife officials had found that many of these poisons worked their way through the food chain, sickening and killing owls, raptors, coyotes and mountain lions.
    — Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2026
  • More importantly, the China business, long a stalwart, started a sickening double-digit decline.
    — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of sickening
Adjective
  • Stuff like Caitlin Clark getting mugged with no foul being called, or Sophie Cunningham pointing at some obnoxious player, or ESPN drooling over a coach wearing a pro-trans shirt.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Meanwhile, the running frenemy dynamic between senior trooper Thorny (Chandrasekhar) and his coarse, obnoxious colleague Farva (Kevin Heffernan) takes more strain than usual when Farva becomes engaged to Thorny’s sister Sarita (Hannah Simone).
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of obnoxious
Adjective
  • Illiteracy, and its centuries-long ongoing epidemic, is hideous.
    — Liza Lentini, SPIN, 21 July 2026
  • The ace endured a rocky start punctuated by a hideous 11-run blowup in Minnesota and has now been sidelined with a shoulder injury since April 26.
    — Mac Cerullo, Hartford Courant, 28 June 2026
Definition of hideous
Adjective
  • As men, women and children flooded across the border between Morocco and Spain, into the autonomous city of Ceuta at the end of July, European populists and anti-immigrant politicians capitalized on the shocking images of human desperation.
    — Vasco Cotovio, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The number was so shocking that the company became a symbol of industrial power and financial concentration.
    — Dave Birnbaum, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of shocking

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repellency
repellent
repelling
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Cite this Entry

“Repellent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/repellent. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on repellent

Nglish: Translation of repellent for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about repellent

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