a thing that makes someone less likely to do something (= that deters them) Hopefully his punishment will act as a deterrent to others. the country's nuclear deterrents (= nuclear weapons that are intended to stop an enemy from attacking)
NAmE//dɪˈtərəns//
noun [uncountable] (formal) His view is that prison sentences must be long enough to satisfy the requirements both of retribution and deterrence. a deterrent effectSee deterrent in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
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