English

Noun

repulsor beam ‎(plural repulsor beams)

1. (science fiction) device used to repel other objects.
   • 1958 November, Anderson, Poul, “A Bicycle Built for Brew”, in Astounding Science Fiction, volume 62, number 3:

     Installed at the center of mass and set to repulsor-beam, this one would be able to move the entire planetoid from its orbit.

   • 1987, Dorothy Catherine Fontana, The Naked Now (Star Trek: The Next Generation), season 1, episode 3:

     Wesley Crusher: "Hooked my model tractor beam into ship's power. Now its a repulsor beam too. Want in?"

   • 1988, Hannah Louise Shearer, When the Bough Breaks (Star Trek: The Next Generation), season 1, episode 17:

     Cpt. Jean-Luc Picard: "What was that?"
     Lt. Cmdr. Data: "I believe it was a repulsor beam."

   • 1995 July 15, Umut Nurkan, “How does cloud city float?”, in rec.arts.sf.starwars, Usenet, message-ID <1995Jul14.190422.22468@hobbes.kzoo.edu>:

     I always wondered how cloud city in ESB stay afloat and does not fall? Is it some kind of repulsor beam, or what?

   • 2008 February 20, Iarnrod, “Re: WTC Towers: The case for controlled demolition”, in alt.conspiracy, Usenet:

     No, that indicates a cloaked Romulan vessel with a repulsor beam.

Synonyms

• pressor beam

Antonyms

• tractor beam