deterrent

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word deterrent. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word deterrent, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say deterrent in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word deterrent you have here. The definition of the word deterrent will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofdeterrent, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
See also: déterrent

English

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin dēterrēns, dēterrentem.

Pronunciation

Adjective

deterrent (comparative more deterrent, superlative most deterrent)

  1. Serving to deter, preventing something from happening.

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

deterrent (plural deterrents)

  1. Something that deters.
    • 1955 January, Charles E. Lee, “The Glasgow Underground Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 23:
      An extension of the system to serve new housing estates on the outskirts of the city, at an estimated cost of about £4,000,000 a mile, is being considered, but the narrow gauge, small clearances, and short platforms are deterrents.
    • 2008, BioWare, Mass Effect (Science Fiction), Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC, scene: Krogan: Genophage Codex entry:
      The salarians believed the genophage would be used as a deterrent, a position the turians viewed as naive. Once the project was complete, the turians mass produced and deployed it. The krogan homeworld, their colonies, and all occupied worlds were infected.
    • 2014, Jimmy Carter, “Full Prisons and Legal Killing”, in A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power‎, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 38:
      One argument made by proponents of the death penalty is that it is a strong deterrent to murder and other violent crimes, but evidence shows just the opposite. Whereas the last execution in Canada took place in 1962, in 2011 there were 598 murders in Canada and 14,610 in the United States.
    • 2024 November 13, Paul Bigland, “Much to admire... but pockets of neglect”, in RAIL, number 1022, page 48:
      All is well until Treorchy, where the platform is swamped by teenagers who have been attending an event. Around four dozen unescorted 12 to 16 year-olds swarm aboard and begin to run riot through the train. Their behaviour is appalling and the presence of CCTV no deterrent.

Derived terms

Translations

Latin

Verb

dēterrent

  1. third-person plural present active indicative of dēterreō
Wikious
Boobota
Sagapedia