repugnant
re·pug·nant/ɹɪˈpʌɡnənt/adjective
repugnant is spelled R-E-P-U-G-N-A-N-T: 9 letters and 3 syllables (re·pug·nant). It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,393rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, repugnant means “Offensive or repulsive; arousing disgust or aversion” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in repugnant?
| Letters | 9: R-E-P-U-G-N-A-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: re·pug·nant |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 32,393rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is repugnant?
Repugnant appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,393rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce repugnant?
- /ɹɪˈpʌɡnənt/
Repugnant has 3 syllables, split re·pug·nant in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-repugnant.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of repugnant
- more repugnant comparative
- most repugnant superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does repugnant mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Offensive or repulsive; arousing disgust or aversion.
- 2
Opposed or in conflict.
a repugnant condition
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Repugnant in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense offensive or repulsive; arousing disgust or aversion:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | répugnant, repoussant |
| German | abstoßend, widerlich, widerwärtig, abscheulich, eklig, ekelhaft |
| Portuguese | repugnante |
| Spanish | repugnante |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does repugnant come from?
From Middle English repugnaunt, from Old French repugnant, borrowed from Latin repugnans, present participle of repugnare (“to oppose, to fight against”), from re- (“back, against”) + pugnare (“to fight”); see pugnacious. By surface analysis, re- + Latin pugn + -ant.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).