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repellency

repellency

7.4
The quality of keeping water or insects away from something
  • noun
  • /rɪˈpɛlənsi/
translation icon : repelencia
  • PHOTO (COLOR): Entomologist Jian Chen checks the repellency of specific compounds using a new bioassay he developed based on the digging behavior of fire ants.
  • water repellency
  • bird repellency

Examples

  • This is explained by the incidence of water repellency under the tree canopy.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Bird repellency of biopesticides

    Academic text (2011)
  • The bird repellency of registered pesticides

    Academic text (2011)
  • Some studies have associated the amount of water repellency with particular vegetation types, such as certain evergreen species, in dry conditions (Doerr, Shakesby, and Walsh 2000).

    Academic text (2002)
  • Other research has shed light on water-repellency mechanisms in different environmental conditions (see, for example, DeBano 2000; Doerr, Shakesby, and Walsh 2000).

    Academic text (2002)
  • For example, Eisemann and colleagues (2011) estimated that it costs about $8 million to register a new agricultural pesticide compared with about $1 million to supplement a registered pesticide for an additional use (e.g., bird repellency).

    Academic text (2011)
  • Keywords: soil water repellency, groundwater recharge, grassland plantation, numerical modeling, infiltration test, Halsey Forest.

    Academic text (2017)
  • Relatively few of those compounds, however, showed evidence of repellency and so underwent further testing through replicated cage tests or field trials (Avery 2002, Avery and Cummings 2003).

    Academic text (2011)
  • The jacket's special coating provides excellent repellency against rain and snow.

  • Good quality tents should have high repellency to keep occupants dry during heavy downpours.

Synonyms

imperviousness
vsrepellency
1 8.7

A state of not allowing water, light, or ideas to pass through

is about actively keeping things away or resisting them rather than mere blockage
hydrophobicity
vsrepellency
  • Specialized
1 8.6

A tendency to push water away rather than soak it in

is broader and applies to resisting liquids or insects not only water
repellence
vsrepellency
7.0

A property of a material that keeps water and insects away

is the alternative form that means the same property but uses a different ending

Antonyms

19 3.2

The quality that makes people notice and like someone's looks or character

How Resistant

impermeability
  • Specialized
8.3
repellency
7.4
permeability
  • Specialized
3 7.4

Surface Forms

repellency singular
repellencies plural

Morphology

repellency = repellent (transparent) = repell + ency

Formed from the adjective 'repellent' with the productive noun-forming suffix '-ency', so the meaning 'quality or ability to repel' is directly derivable.

Etymology

Repellency comes from the parts re- 'back' and pellere 'to push', the same root you see in repel and propel. So repellency is the ability of a material to 'push away' things like water or insects.