re-

See also: Appendix:Variations of "re"

Languages (29)

Akan • Catalan • Chuukese • Danish • Dutch • Esperanto • Franco-Provençal • French • Galician • German • Hungarian • Indonesian • Interlingua • Italian • Latin • Middle French • Neapolitan • Norman • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Occitan • Old French • Polish • Portuguese • Romanian • Slovak • Spanish • Swedish

Page categories

English

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Italic *wre-

Latin re-der.

Old French re-bor.

Middle English re-

English re-

From Middle English re-, from Old French re-, from Latin re-, red- (“back; anew; again; against”), see there for more. Displaced native English ed-, eft-, a-, with-/wither-, gain-/again-.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɹiː/
- Audio (US): (file)
IPA^(key): /ɹɪ/
- Audio (US): (file)
IPA^(key): /ɹə/
- Audio (US): (file)

Prefix

re-

again, anew
‎re- + ‎new → ‎renew (“to make something new again”)

‎re- + ‎commit → ‎recommit (“to commit an act again”)

‎re- + ‎heat → ‎reheat (“to heat something that has cooled off”)
a completive or intensification of the base; up, a-, out
reletter, relead, rebronze (examples from: ^[1])
back, backward
reject, reply, resist

Usage notes

The pronunciation varies depending on the word, with /ɹiː/, /ɹɪ/ (some pronunciations), /ɹɛ/ found in words like replay, resist and revolution, respectively.
The hyphen is not normally included in words formed using this prefix, except when the absence of a hyphen would make the meaning unclear. Hyphens are used in the following cases:
- Sometimes in new coinages and nonce words.
  stir and re-stir the mixture
- When the word that the prefix is combined with begins with a capital letter.
  re-Christianise
- When the word that the prefix is combined with begins with another re-.
  re-record
- In British usage, when the word that the prefix is combined with begins with e.
  re-entry (North American: reentry)
- When the word formed is identical in form to another word in which re- does not have any of the senses listed above.
  The chairs have been re-covered (covered again)
  
  The chairs have been recovered (obtained back)
A dieresis may be used instead of a hyphen, as in reëntry. This usage is now rare, but extant; see diaeresis (diacritic) for examples and discussion.
re- is highly productive, to the point of being almost grammaticalized — almost any verb can have re- applied, especially in colloquial speech. Notable exceptions to this include all forms of be and the modal verbs can, should, etc. When used productively, it is always pronounced /ɹiː/.

Synonyms

(again): ana-, palin-
(back): with-

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with re-

Translations

again

Armenian: վերա- (vera-)
Azerbaijani: yenidən
Catalan: re- (ca)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 重- (-chóng), 再- (zài-)
Crimean Tatar: yañıdan
Czech: pře- (cs), znovu- (cs)
Danish: gen-
Dutch: her- (nl), weer-, weder-
Esperanto: re- (eo)
Finnish: jälleen- (fi), uudestaan (fi)
French: r- (fr), re- (fr), ré- (fr)
Middle French: re-

Old French: re-
Galician: re- (gl)
Georgian: ხელახლა (xelaxla), განმეორებით (ganmeorebit), კვლავ (ḳvlav), რე- (re-)
German: re- (de), wieder- (de), zurück- (de)
Greek: ανα- (el) (ana-), επανα- (el) (epana-), ξανα- (el) (xana-)
Hindi: पुनर्- (punar-)
Hittite: 𒀀𒀊𒉺 (a-ap-pa)
Hungarian: újra- (hu), újjá- (hu)
Icelandic: endur-
Ido: ri-
Interlingua: re-
Irish: a-, ath-
Italian: re- (it), ri- (it)
Japanese: 再- (ja) (sai-), -直す (-naosu), -返す (-kaesu)
Khmer: វិញ (km) (vɨñ)
Korean: 재 (ko) (jae), 재- (jae-)
Kurdish:
Northern Kurdish: ve- (ku)
Luwian: 𒀀𒀊𒉺 (a-ap-pa)
Macedonian: пре- (pre-)
Malayalam: പുനഃ- (punaḥ-)
Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
Norman: èr-, re-
Norwegian: gjen-
Occitan: re-
Old English: ed-, aġēn
Persian: باز- (bâz-)
Polish: od- (pl), prze- (pl)
Portuguese: re- (pt)
Romanian: re- (ro)
Russian: пере- (ru) (pere-), воз- (ru) (voz-)/вос- (ru) (vos-), ре- (ru) (re-)
Sanskrit: पुनः- (punaḥ-)
Scottish Gaelic: ath- (lenites)
Spanish: re- (es)
Swedish: åter- (sv), re- (sv), om- (sv)
Thai: please add this translation if you can
Turkish: yeniden (tr), tekrar (tr)
Ukrainian: пере- (pere-), воз- (voz-), ре- (re-), від- (vid-)
Vietnamese: lại (vi)
Walloon: ri- (wa), er- (wa), r- (wa)
Welsh: ail-, eil-, ad-, at-

References

“re-”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

^ Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “re- (prefix),” December 2023, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1031113569.

Anagrams

'er, -'er, -er, E-R, E. R., E.R., ER, er, er.

Akan

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ɹé-/
Note: Undergoes ATR and roundness harmony in Fante.

Prefix

ré- (Twi)

(affirmative) Marks the progressive aspect.
(negative) Marks the future tense.

Usage notes

In everyday speech in Asante Twi, the prefix is omitted and the preceding vowel, even across a word boundary, is lengthened and pronounced with a high tone. For example, an inflected verb such as ɔrentumi (/ɔ̀ɹéǹ̩tùmí/, “he/she will not be able”), third-person negative future of tumi (“to be able”), would be realized as [ɔ́ːǹ̩tʰùmí], a near tonal minimal pair with negative present tense ɔntumi ([ɔ̀ǹ̩tʰùmí]).^[1]

References

^ LearnAkan.com (16 September 2026), Learn Twi with Akwaboah's "Hyɛ Me Bɔ" (Part 1) 🎬 🎵 | LEARNAKAN.COM‎^[1], YouTube

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re- (again)
‎re- + ‎fer (“to do”) → ‎refer (“to redo”)
intensifier for adjectives and adverbs
Synonym: -íssim

‎re- + ‎vell (“old”) → ‎revell (“very old”)
great-, grand- (used to denote the removal of one generation)
Synonym: bes-

‎re- + ‎nebot (“nephew”) → ‎renebot (“grandnephew”)

Derived terms

Catalan terms prefixed with re-

Chuukese

Prefix

re-

(inflected as a noun) with
(subject marker for tense modifying adverbs) they

Danish

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re-
Synonyms: gen-, om-, ny-

Derived terms

Danish terms prefixed with re-

References

“re-” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

From Latin re-. Doublet of her-.

Prefix

re-

re-

Derived terms

Dutch terms prefixed with re-

Esperanto

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Italic *wre-

Latin re-bor.

Esperanto re-

Borrowed from Latin re-.^[1] Compare English, French, German, Polish, and Spanish re-; French ré-; Italian ri-; Russian ре- (re-)

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /re/
Audio: (file)
Rhymes: -e
Syllabification: re-

Prefix

re-

indicates repetition, again
indicates a return to previous state, back
indicates an action performed reciprocally, back (e.g., to hit back, to talk back)

Derived terms

References

^ Ebbe Vilborg, “re-”, in Etimologia Vortaro de Esperanto [Etymological Dictionary of Esperanto], volume 5, →ISBN, page 151

Franco-Provençal

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re- (ORB, broad)

Attaches to verbs, often adding a sense of repetition or reversion.

Derived terms

Franco-Provençal terms prefixed with re-

rechèrchiér

revêre

French

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ʁə/
Audio (France (Lyon)): (file)

Prefix

re-

re-
‎re- + ‎marcher (“to function”) → ‎remarcher (“to function again”)
meaningless generic derivation prefix, especially as r-. From semantic bleaching of sense 1 followed by the unprefixed terms becoming obsolete or diverging in meaning.

Usage notes

This is only used when the stem starts with a consonant; otherwise, ré- or r- are used.

Derived terms

French terms prefixed with re-

Galician

Etymology

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese re-, from Latin re-.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /re/ [rɪ]
Hyphenation: re-

Prefix

re-

forms verbs indicating that the action is being done again; re-
‎re- + ‎facer (“to do”) → ‎refacer (“to redo”)

Derived terms

German

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ʁe/
Audio (Germany (Berlin)): (file)

Prefix

re-

re-

Derived terms

German terms prefixed with re-

Hungarian

Etymology

From Latin re- (“again; back”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈrɛ]

Prefix

re-

indicates repetition, again
indicates a return to previous state, back

Derived terms

Hungarian verbs prefixed with re-

reorganizál

reprivatizál

Indonesian

Etymology

Internationalism, ultimately from Latin re-. Doublet of her.

Pronunciation

(Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈre/ [ˈre]
Rhymes: -e
Syllabification: re-

Prefix

re-

re-

Derived terms

Indonesian terms prefixed with re-

Interlingua

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

back, backwards
again; prefix added to various words to indicate an action being done again, or like the other usages indicated above under English.

Derived terms

Interlingua terms prefixed with re-

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin re-. The prefix re- is borrowed from Latin, while the variant ri- is inherited from Latin.^[1]

Prefix

re-

re-
Synonym: ri-

Usage notes

The prefix re- normally replaces ri- before words beginning with i, for euphonic reasons, but it may sometimes be spelled fully nevertheless: rinvio (usual spelling) vs. reinvio

Derived terms

References

^ Migliorini, Bruno with Aldo Duro (1950), Prontuario etimologico della lingua italiana (in Italian), Paravia

Latin

Etymology

From Proto-Italic *wre- (“again”), of uncertain origin (OED); see the Proto-Italic entry for more.^[1]

Prefix

re-

back, backwards
un-, de-^[2]
‎re- + ‎glūtinō (“glue”) → ‎reglūtinō (“unglue, separate”)

‎re- + ‎neō (“spin, weave, entwine”) → ‎reneō (“unspin, unravel”)

‎re- + ‎gelō (“freeze, congeal”) → ‎regelō (“thaw, unfreeze”)
again; prefix added to various words to indicate an action being done again, or like the other usages indicated above under English.

Usage notes

The alternative form red- occurs before vowels or h in old formations; it is used with the linking vowel -i- in the word redivīvus. The -d- can be compared to that in sēditiō (compare sē- and sed) and in prōd-, antid-, postid- (alternative forms of prō-, ante-, post-). It may originate from the particle *de^[3] or from the use of -d as an archaic ablative singular ending. The use of the form re- before vowels, as in reaedifico, reinvito, is not seen until Late Latin.^[3] (See Lewis & Short, A Latin Dictionary, 1897, s.v. "re" and "D").

Before consonants, its usual form is rĕ- with short /e/, but the following consonant is sometimes doubled. In some cases, such as reccidī, the double consonant comes from syncope of an originally reduplicated syllable of the base word: compare the unprefixed form cecidī. In other cases, such as redducō, relligiō, relliquiae, the double consonant may have arisen from preconsonantal use of red-, with assimilation of -d- to the following consonant.

Derived terms

Latin terms prefixed with re-

Descendants

Catalan: re-
→ English: re-
French: re-, ré-, r-
Galician: re-
Interlingua: re-
Italian: re-, ri-
Norman: re-, èr-
Occitan: re-
Picard: ar-
Portuguese: re-
Romanian: ră-, re-
Spanish: re-

References

^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “re-, red-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 516
^ R. B. Burnaby (1905), Elegiac Selections from Ovid, page 98
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 Lindsay, Wallace Martin (1894), The Latin Language, page 591

Middle French

Prefix

re-

re- (again; once more)

Neapolitan

Etymology

Inherited from Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re-

Derived terms

Neapolitan terms prefixed with re-

revotare

Norman

Alternative forms

èr-

Etymology

From Old French re-, from Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re-

Derived terms

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re-

References

Norwegian Bokmål terms prefixed with re-

“re-” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re-

References

Norwegian Nynorsk terms prefixed with re-

“re-” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Occitan

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re-

Derived terms

Occitan terms prefixed with re-

Old French

Etymology

From Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re- (again; once more)

Polish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Italic *wre-

Latin re-lbor.

Polish re-

Learned borrowing from Latin re-.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /rɛ/
Audio: (file)
Rhymes: -ɛ
Syllabification: re-
Homophones: re, Re

Prefix

re-

re- (again, anew)
re- (back, backward)

Derived terms

Portuguese

Etymology

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese re-, from Latin re-.

Pronunciation

(Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁe/ [he], /ˌʁe/ [ˌhe]
- (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /ʁe/ [χe], /ˌʁe/ [ˌχe]

(Portugal) IPA^(key): /ʁɨ/

Hyphenation: re-

Prefix

re-

forms verbs indicating that the action is being done again; re-
‎re- + ‎fazer (“to do”) → ‎refazer (“to redo”)

Derived terms

Portuguese terms prefixed with re-

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin re-. The form ră- only appears in a few inherited words.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /re/

Prefix

re-

re-

Slovak

Alternative forms

red- (used when followed by a vowel)

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Italic *wre-

Latin re-lbor.

Slovak re-

Learned borrowing from Latin re-.

Prefix

re-

re- (again, anew)
re- (back, backward)

Derived terms

Slovak terms prefixed with re-

reaktivizácia

References

Králik, Ľubor (2016), “re-”, in Stručný etymologický slovník slovenčiny [Concise Etymological Dictionary of Slovak] (in Slovak), Bratislava: VEDA; JÚĽŠ SAV, →ISBN, page 494

Spanish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Italic *wre-

Latin re-der.

Spanish re-

From Latin re-.

The use with adjectives is typical of Ibero-Romance. Compare Italian stra- (from Latin extra-), French très (from Latin trans-; now spelt separate, but formerly also a prefix).

Prefix

re-

back, backwards
‎re- + ‎fluir → ‎refluir

‎re- + ‎pugnar → ‎repugnar
again
‎re- + ‎construir → ‎reconstruir
strongly, intensely
‎re- + ‎bramar → ‎rebramar
(now chiefly colloquial) forms absolute superlatives from adjectives
Synonyms: muy, -ísimo

‎re- + ‎bueno (“good”) → ‎rebueno (“great”)

‎re- + ‎chulo (“cute”) → ‎rechulo (“very cute”)