as in obstacle
something that makes movement or progress difficult
the homeowner put up a fence around his garden as a deterrent for animals
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as in preventive
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of deterrent
Robert Goulder, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2024
Vale responded by arguing that Trump's frauds impacted consumers by inserting false and misleading information into the marketplace, and that Trump's fine has a deterrent effect.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2024
By Yian Lee / Bloomberg September 20, 2024 4:10 AM EDT
Taiwan’s Constitutional Court upheld the legality of the death penalty but moved to limit its use, in a decision that strikes a balance between keeping the punishment’s deterrent effect and preventing its abuse.
—Yian Lee / Bloomberg, TIME, 20 Sep. 2024
And for many soldiers, the threat of termination was deterrent enough.
—Sarah A. Topol, New York Times, 20 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for deterrent
Adjective
The First Circuit agreed with the lower court, holding that FBAR penalties — acknowledged to be partly deterrent in nature — are not subject to the constitutional protection against excessive fines.
—Robert Goulder, Forbes, 15 Oct. 2024
Vale responded by arguing that Trump's frauds impacted consumers by inserting false and misleading information into the marketplace, and that Trump's fine has a deterrent effect.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2024
By Yian Lee / Bloomberg September 20, 2024 4:10 AM EDT
Taiwan’s Constitutional Court upheld the legality of the death penalty but moved to limit its use, in a decision that strikes a balance between keeping the punishment’s deterrent effect and preventing its abuse.
—Yian Lee / Bloomberg, TIME, 20 Sep. 2024
And for many soldiers, the threat of termination was deterrent enough.
—Sarah A. Topol, New York Times, 20 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for deterrent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deterrent
Noun
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The Times spoke to both sides, as well as multiple experts to better understand the high-stakes litigation, which faces obstacles but could shake up California’s home insurance industry.—
Laurence Darmiento,
Los Angeles Times,
29 May 2025
-
Kennedy’s announcement does not broadly address healthy adults, but under the new FDA framework, healthy adults who wish to receive the fall COVID-19 vaccine will likely face obstacles.—
Libby Richards,
The Conversation,
29 May 2025
Adjective
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Nonetheless, the authors did state that COVID-19 vaccination remains a crucial preventive measure for pregnant women to reduce the overall risk of serious complications in pregnancy due to infection.—
Libby Richards,
The Conversation,
29 May 2025
-
According to the same course, predictive maintenance strategies provide an additional 8% to 12% cost savings over preventive maintenance.—
Rohit Prakash,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2025
Noun
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That can include language hurdles, arranging child care or elder care, and significant differences in national pension or retirement programs.—
Christina Larson,
Los Angeles Times,
25 May 2025
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Lawmakers are wrestling over President Donald Trump’s multi-trillion-dollar tax and spending package, which passed in the House on Thursday, and could face hurdles in the Senate.—
Kate Dore, CFP®, EA,
CNBC,
23 May 2025
Noun
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Use waterproof barriers, such as special ointments or creams, to protect the skin from direct contact with water.—
Sarah Jividen,
Verywell Health,
23 May 2025
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As far as the lack of democratization, the current state of supply chains presents a high barrier to entry for small businesses who want to integrate with larger retailers or access global networks.—
Shekar Natarajan,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
Adjective
-
After two years of defensive decline, Arenado is back to reminding the baseball world why he’s won 10 Gold Gloves.—
Katie Woo,
New York Times,
26 May 2025
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This behavior, where the gecko flicks dirt over itself, might be a grooming response or a defensive tactic against insects.—
Real-Time news team,
Miami Herald,
25 May 2025
Noun
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Additionally, 24% of providers in Colorado reported incidents of obstruction over those two years, and 18% experienced threats.—
Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton,
Denver Post,
22 May 2025
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Aid must flow immediately, without obstruction and at scale, because this is what is needed.—
Amira El-Fekki,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 May 2025
Noun
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The press had assembled to watch Earhart soar, and instead witnessed an embarrassment.—
Laurie Gwen Shapiro,
New Yorker,
2 June 2025
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King, whose chapter represents Treasury employees in the D.C. area, accused the national union of just hoping the internal problem goes away, and instead the issue is creating an embarrassment.—
Erin Mansfield,
USA Today,
29 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deterrent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deterrent. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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