Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To revoke or rescind, especially by the action of a legislature.
  • transitive verb Obsolete To summon back or recall, especially from exile.
  • noun The act or process of repealing.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To call back; recall, as from banishment, exile, or disgrace.
  • To give up; dismiss.
  • To revoke; abrogate, as a law or statute: it usually implies a recalling of the act by the power that made or enacted it.
  • Synonyms Annul, Rescind, etc. See abolish, and list under abrogate.
  • noun Recall, as from exile.
  • noun The act of repealing; revocation; abrogation: as, the repeal of a statute.
  • noun Synonyms See abolish.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun obsolete Recall, as from exile.
  • noun Revocation; abrogation
  • transitive verb obsolete To recall; to summon again, as persons.
  • transitive verb To recall, as a deed, will, law, or statute; to revoke; to rescind or abrogate by authority, as by act of the legislature.
  • transitive verb obsolete To suppress; to repel.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb transitive To cancel, invalidate, annul.
  • noun An act or instance of repealing.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the act of abrogating; an official or legal cancellation
  • verb cancel officially

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English repelen, repealen, from Anglo-Norman repeler, alteration of Old French rapeler : re-, re- + apeler, to appeal; see appeal.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin repellō ("drive or thrust back"), from re and pellō ("push or strike")

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