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resist

 - 3 dictionary results

re⋅sist

  [ri-zist]
–verb (used with object)
1. to withstand, strive against, or oppose: to resist infection; to resist temptation.
2. to withstand the action or effect of: to resist spoilage.
3. to refrain or abstain from, esp. with difficulty or reluctance: They couldn't resist the chocolates.
–verb (used without object)
4. to make a stand or make efforts in opposition; act in opposition; offer resistance.
–noun
5. a substance that prevents or inhibits some effect from taking place, as a coating on a surface of a metallic printing plate that prevents or inhibits corrosion of the metal by acid.
6. Textiles. a chemically inert substance used in resist printing.
Use resist in a Sentence
Origin:
1325–75; ME resisten (v.) < L resistere to remain standing, equiv. to re- re- + sistere to cause to stand, akin to stāre to stand

Related forms:
re⋅sist⋅er, noun
re⋅sist⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. confront, counteract, rebuff. See oppose.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To resist
re·sist   (rĭ-zĭst')   
v.   re·sist·ed, re·sist·ing, re·sists

v.   tr.

  1. To strive to fend off or offset the actions, effects, or force of.

  2. To remain firm against the actions, effects, or force of; withstand: a bacterium that resisted the antibiotic.

  3. To keep from giving in to or enjoying.

v.   intr.
To offer resistance. See Synonyms at oppose.
n.  A substance that can cover and protect a surface, as from corrosion.

[Middle English resisten, from Old French resister, from Latin resistere : re-, re- + sistere, to place; see stā- in Indo-European roots.]
re·sist'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

resist 
c.1374, from O.Fr. resister, from L. resistere "to resist, to stand back, withstand," from re- "against" + sistere "take a stand, stand firm" (see assist). Resistance is attested from 1417, from O.Fr. resistence, from L.L. resistentia, from L. resistentem (nom. resistens), prp. of resistere. Sense of "organized covert opposition to an occupying power" first recorded 1940 in reference to Fr. opposition to Nazi rule. Since applied to similar organizations (e.g. anti-Soviet fighters in Afghanistan, 1980s). Electromagnetic sense is from 1860.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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