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⇱ REPAIR Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com


repair

1 American  
[ri-pair] / rɪˈpɛər /

verb (used with object)

  1. to restore to a good or sound condition after decay or damage; mend.

    to repair a motor.

    Synonyms:
    renovate, remodel, fix
    Antonyms:
    destroy, break
  2. to restore or renew by any process of making good, strengthening, etc..

    to repair one's health by resting.

    Synonyms:
    amend, rejuvenate, renew
  3. to remedy; make good; put right.

    to repair damage;

    to repair a deficiency.

    Synonyms:
    recoup, retrieve
  4. to make amends for; compensate.

    to repair a wrong done.

    Synonyms:
    redress

noun

  1. an act, process, or work of repairing.

    to order the repair of a building.

  2. Usually repairs.

    1. an instance or operation of repairing.

      to lay up a boat for repairs.

    2. a repaired part or an addition made in repairing.

      Seventeenth-century repairs in brick are conspicuous in parts of the medieval stonework.

  3. repairs, (in bookkeeping, accounting, etc.) the part of maintenance expense that has been paid out to keep fixed assets in usable condition, as distinguished from amounts used for renewal or replacement.

  4. the good condition resulting from continued maintenance and repairing.

    to keep in repair.

  5. condition with respect to soundness and usability.

    a house in good repair.

repair 2 American  
[ri-pair] / rɪˈpɛər /

verb (used without object)

  1. to betake oneself; go, as to a place.

    He repaired in haste to Washington.

  2. to go frequently or customarily.


noun

  1. a resort or haunt.

  2. the act of going or going customarily; resort.

    to have repair to the country.

  3. Scot. Obsolete. a meeting, association, or crowd of people.

repair 1 British  
/ rɪˈpɛə /

verb

  1. to restore (something damaged or broken) to good condition or working order

  2. to heal (a breach or division) in (something)

    to repair a broken marriage

  3. to make good or make amends for (a mistake, injury, etc)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. the act, task, or process of repairing

  2. a part that has been repaired

  3. state or condition

    in good repair

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
repair 2 British  
/ rɪˈpɛə /

verb

  1. (usually foll by to) to go (to a place)

    to repair to the country

  2. (usually foll by to) to have recourse (to) for help, etc

    to repair to one's lawyer

  3. archaic (usually foll by from) to come back; return

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. the act of going or returning

  2. a haunt or resort

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See renew.

Other Word Forms

  • nonrepairable adjective
  • repairability noun
  • repairable adjective
  • repairableness noun
  • repairer noun

Etymology

Origin of repair1

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English reparen, repairen, from Middle French reparer, from Latin reparāre, equivalent to re- re- + parāre to prepare; pare

Origin of repair2

First recorded 1300–50; Middle English repairen, repeiren, from Old French repairier, repeirier, “to return,” from Late Latin repatriāre “to return to one's homeland”; repatriate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Lee has sought to repair ties with North Korea since taking office last year, criticising his predecessor for allegedly sending drones to scatter propaganda over Pyongyang.

From Barron's • Apr. 6, 2026

West has been striving to repair his image.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

Minute Media has gotten high marks from the SI staff for its repair work on the media side of the business.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2026

Such seamless technologies teach us that repair and understanding is not our role and that such proficiency and knowledge is unnecessary.

From Slate • Apr. 4, 2026

They were all in such a state of ill repair that Anya probably could have snapped them all with just her hands.

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.