repulse

See also: repulsé

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin repulsus, from repellere (“to drive back”), from re- (“back”) + pellere (“to drive”).

For spelling, as in pulse, the -e (on -lse) is so the end is pronounced /ls/, rather than /lz/ as in pulls, and does not change the vowel (‘u’). Compare else, false, convulse.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɹɪˈpʌls/

Verb

1. (transitive) To repel or drive back.

   to repulse an assault; to repulse the enemy

2. (transitive) To reject or rebuff.

   to repulse a suitor

3. (transitive) To cause revulsion in.

   The smell of rotting food repulsed me.

   I find your conduct reprehensible, disgusting, and it repulses me, the way a mongoose repulses a snake.

Translations

to repel or drive back

• Finnish: torjua (fi) (to repel), karkottaa (fi) (to drive back)
• Latin: repellō, prōturbō
• Maori: taiari, taieri
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: отража́ть (ru) impf (otražátʹ), отрази́ть (ru) pf (otrazítʹ), отбива́ть (ru) impf (otbivátʹ), отби́ть (ru) pf (otbítʹ), дава́ть отпо́р impf (davátʹ otpór), дать отпо́р pf (datʹ otpór)

to reject or rebuff

• Finnish: torjua (fi)
• Latin: repellō
• Maori: whakahoe, whakapeka
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: отка́зывать (ru) impf (otkázyvatʹ), отказа́ть (ru) pf (otkazátʹ), отверга́ть (ru) impf (otvergátʹ), отве́ргнуть (ru) pf (otvérgnutʹ) (reject)

to cause revulsion

• Finnish: inhottaa (fi)
• Russian: отта́лкивать (ru) impf (ottálkivatʹ), оттолкну́ть (ru) pf (ottolknútʹ)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Spanish: repulsar (es)

Noun

repulse (plural repulses)

1. the act of repulsing or the state of being repulsed
2. refusal, rejection or repulsion

Related terms

• repel
• repellent
• repulsion
• repulsive
• pulse

Further reading

• “repulse”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “repulse”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “repulse”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• Slurpee, pelures, perules

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Italian

Verb

repulse

1. third-person singular past historic of repellere

Noun

repulse

1. plural of repulso

Anagrams

• preluse
• presule

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Latin

Participle

(deprecated template usage) repulse

1. vocative masculine singular of repulsus

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Spanish

Verb

repulse

1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of repulsar.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of repulsar.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of repulsar.
4. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of repulsar.