repulses 1 of 2

noun

plural of repulse
as in rebuffs
treatment that is deliberately unfriendly 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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

repulses

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of repulse
1
as in disgusts
to cause to feel disgust the smell of that town's paper mill totally repulses me

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in repels
to drive back the defense repeatedly repulsed all of the offense's attempts to move the ball forward, keeping them firmly planted on the 20-yard line

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 repulses
Verb
Her widowed aunt plays chaperone as Susanna attends heady lectures and repulses her many suitors. — Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026 Sigmund Freud believed that every crush has a strand of disgust, that people are attracted to what repulses them. — Daniel Felsenthal, Vulture, 26 Mar. 2026 Charlie, though, is trying to keep them out of a country that thoroughly repulses him. — Alexander Nazaryan, New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for repulses
  1. dismissals
  2. disgusts
  3. repels
  4. snubs
  5. sickens
  6. resists
  7. rejections
Noun
  • Next year, if Democrats claim the majority in both chambers, the GOP can’t expect quick dismissals.
    — Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 3 Nov. 2026
  • But even with the dismissals, Live Nation is still calling a foul.
    — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of dismissals
Verb
  • That’s what really disgusts me.
    — Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 20 May 2026
Definition of disgusts
Verb
  • The Luxury Pillow keeps your head and neck in the ideal position to stay asleep all night, made with soft bamboo viscose material that naturally repels common household non-living allergens.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The exteriors are made with waterproof mesh that dries quickly and repels water, and spacious toe boxes will never squeeze your feet or cause discomfort.
    — Merrell Readman, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of repels
Noun
  • As his son Charles recounts in Swan Song, when Diana considered calling off her wedding to Prince Charles after suffering various snubs from the heir to the throne, Count Spencer flatly rejected his youngest daughter’s idea.
    — Diego Parrado, Vanity Fair, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Its complete omission from the 2026 Latin Grammy nominations was one of the most notable snubs on Wednesday morning.
    — Sigal Ratner-Arias, Billboard, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of snubs
Verb
  • Domoic acid is a toxin produced by algae and typically sickens animals that feed on open-ocean fish.
    — Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Alcohol kills 178,000 Americans each year and sickens countless more.
    — Lev Facher, STAT, 12 May 2026
Definition of sickens
Verb
  • Here, the screen is also supported by a new hinge that effectively resists wobble while remaining easy to open with one hand.
    — Joe Osborne, PC Magazine, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Caribbean countries are attempting to participate as equal partners, while Britain, the former imperial center, resists meaningful engagement with the historical foundations of its wealth and power.
    — Brooke N. Newman, The Conversation, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of resists
Noun
  • For now and for forever, the midterm election of 2026 will be known as one of the most decisive rejections of an American President since long before Richard Nixon got on that helicopter in 1974.
    — Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Ballot rejections have skyrocketed, Democracy Docket reported, because voters aren’t sealing the inner envelope.
    — Jen Fifield, ProPublica, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of rejections

Browse Nearby Words

repulsed
repulses
repulsing
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Repulses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/repulses. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of defer

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
woman sitting on floor holding book in front of her face on pink background
Famous Novels, Last Lines Quiz Needless to say, spoiler alert.
See All