deter
Americanverb (used with object)
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deters,
present (3rd person singular)
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deterred,
past participle, past
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deterring
present participle
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to discourage or restrain from acting or proceeding.
The large dog deterred trespassers.
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to prevent; check; arrest.
timber treated with creosote to deter rot.
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to repel.
Strongly scented marigolds planted among the melons are supposed to deter beetles.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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determentnoun
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deterrabilitynoun
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deterrernoun
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undeterrabilitynoun
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deterrableadjective
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undeterrableadjective
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undeterringadjective
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undeterrablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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detersimple
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deterssimple
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have deterredperfect
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has deterredperfect
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am deterringprogressive
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are deterringprogressive
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is deterringprogressive
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have been deterringperfect progressive
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has been deterringperfect progressive
Past
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deterredsimple
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had deterredperfect
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was deterringprogressive
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were deterringprogressive
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had been deterringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of deter
First recorded in 1570–80; from Latin dēterrēre “to discourage, put off, frighten,” equivalent to dē-, prefix and preposition + terrēre “to frighten, scare”; see de-
Explanation
Deter means to discourage, or literally “to frighten away.” Halloween decorations that are too scary might deter trick-or-treaters, and the risk of being expelled deters kids from cheating in school. Deter comes from the Latin de meaning "away" and terrere meaning "frighten." Something that deters isn’t always scary, though: citronella plants deter mosquitoes, and fines deter people from littering. Teddy Roosevelt's foreign policy dictum "speak softly and carry a big stick" was meant to deter other countries from attacking the United States.
Vocabulary lists containing deter
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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.
See Examples For:
"We will take any other necessary and proportionate measures -- whether public or otherwise -- to respond to this incident and deter anyone who might seek to repeat it," he added.
From Barron's ● Nov. 9, 2026
AI plays have derated, short positions must now be monetized and the upshot of the elections could be to actually accelerate capital expenditure rather than deter it.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
“They instead receive lesser amounts dictated by the remaining Executor, who uses this power to deter them from checking his abuses,” Paris’ petition alleges.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
New South Wales police say the officers will also patrol major events like sports matches and places of worship "to prevent, deter and rapidly respond to serious threats, including active armed offender incidents".
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026
Trees can also deter destructive creatures like caterpillars by flooding their leaves with tannin, which makes the leaves less tasty and so inclines the caterpillars to look elsewhere.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
He’s so obsessed with being the best that three broken arms suffered from falls, along with a compression back fracture, hardly deters him to think twice about flying through the air trying to perform tricks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2026
That’s what “nuclear deterrence” is all about; the possession of nuclear weapons deters others from behaving aggressively.
From Slate ● Sep. 10, 2026
Evidence that the CTA deters real criminals is thin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
Only very poor weather deters them from trading, with slightly shorter opening hours in the winter.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
The others have turned pale; let’s hope it deters them.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
It’s been a wild week for the AI trade, but that hasn’t deterred the Claude developer from pushing ahead with its public listing.
From Barron's ● Nov. 10, 2026
The Pentagon told the BBC it had followed the law and that Hegseth would not be deterred by "phony investigations".
From BBC ● Nov. 8, 2026
Mountain lions prefer cover but Riley doesn’t think they’ll be deterred.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
Citrini is also deterred by the token price wars between OpenAI and Anthropic that began this summer.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026
“You will perhaps be deterred by the rising of your stomach,” he writes.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
The Housing Action Coalition, a nonprofit that advocates for building more housing in California, called the proposed increase is a small and meaningful step toward deterring unnecessary delays.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 10, 2026
The sight of vacant shops and graffiti can quickly become a vicious circle, deterring shoppers, discouraging investment and leading to anti-social behaviour.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
That begs the question of why they were performed, other than raw intimidation, deterring would-be whistleblowers, and punishing the disloyal.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
The five-day drills, called Freedom Edge, are aimed at deterring North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
It can patrol there with its big old horns, deterring burglars and such.
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
