Meaning & use
repetition
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The act of doing, saying or producing something again, once or many times.
Grammar: Uncountable for the general idea (learn by repetition); countable for an occasion (a repetition of the mistake).
Patterns
- repetition of something
- by repetition
Languages are learned largely through repetition.
The teacher asked for no repetition of the earlier mistake.
Constant repetition made the song hard to enjoy.
nouncountable
A thing that happens or is done again, often a repeat of something unwelcome.
Grammar: Usually singular with a: a repetition of last year's problems.
Patterns
- a repetition of something
The coach feared a repetition of last week's defeat.
This is merely a repetition of what you told me yesterday.
City leaders want to prevent any repetition of the flood.
nouncountable or uncountabletechnical
A deliberate use of the same word, phrase or pattern in speech, writing or music for emphasis or rhythm.
Grammar: Used about style: the repetition of a phrase, or repetition as a device.
Patterns
- repetition of a phrase
- use repetition
The speech builds power through repetition of the same phrase.
The composer uses repetition to make the theme memorable.
Poets use repetition to create rhythm.
Word forms
| plural | repetitions |
|---|
Common combinations
- constant repetition
- Constant repetition helped the actors memorize their lines.
- avoid repetition
- Try to avoid repetition in your essay.
- learn by repetition
- Children often learn songs by repetition.
- endless repetition
- The job was an endless repetition of the same task.
- repetition of a mistake
- We must prevent a repetition of that mistake.
Synonyms and how they differ
- repeat
- Repeat names the thing that is done again, while repetition is the act or the fact of doing it.
- recurrence
- Recurrence means something coming back by itself, not being done on purpose.
- duplication
- Duplication suggests a needless second copy of work, while repetition is broader.
- redundancy
- Redundancy implies unnecessary extra words or items, often as a flaw.
Opposites
Word family
- repeat verb
- to say or do something again
- repeat noun
- something done or shown again
- repetitive adjective
- involving the same thing many times
- repetitious adjective
- full of unnecessary repeating
- repeatedly adverb
- again and again
Commonly confused: repetition or recitation?
repetition vs recitation
A recitation is saying a memorized text aloud, whereas repetition is doing something again.
Practice
The author's constant ___ of the same adjective made the paragraph feel dull.
Choose one answer.
A noun is needed after constant, and repetition fits the sense of using the same word again. Repetitive is an adjective and cannot be followed by of here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “repetition”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.