reconquest

noun

re·​con·​quest (ˌ)rē-ˈkän-ˌkwest How to pronounce reconquest (audio)
-ˈkäŋ-;
-ˈkäŋ-kwəst
plural reconquests
: a second or new conquest of something previously conquered
especially : recovery of something by conquest
When he came in sight of Mexico City his heart quickened, for here he was to meet his hero, the general, and learn from him when the reconquest and punishment of Tejas was to begin. James A. Michener
Do we pull U.S. troops out of Syria as Trump promised, or keep U.S. troops there to resist the reconquest of his country by Bashar Assad and his Russian, Iranian, Hezbollah and Shiite allies? Patrick J. Buchanan

Examples of reconquest in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web For its part, the Azerbaijani side showed little interest in substantial negotiations and built up its own revanchist project for reconquest of its territories. Thomas De Waal, Foreign Affairs, 26 Sep. 2023 By contrast, the near rout of Russian soldiers in the Kharkiv region on September 10—and the rapid reconquest by Ukrainian forces of territory spanning some 2,000 square miles in the east and south—clearly showed that Ukraine was on top and that Russian Get unlimited access to all Foreign Affairs. Liana Fix, Foreign Affairs, 16 Sep. 2022 Beattie gushes about the results of the program in Florida so far, citing an unsigned piece in Revolver News, a right-wing outlet, that compares the right-wing reconquest of Florida’s university system with Napoleon’s lightning victory over the Austrians in 1805. Katherine Stewart, The New Republic, 10 Aug. 2023 In the wake of the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan, the Taliban’s swift reconquest of the country, and the chaotic, bloody exodus that has followed, U.S. officials have lamented that the Afghans failed to put up a fight. Sarah Chayes, Foreign Affairs, 3 Sep. 2021 Rather than setting the stage for a difficult intra-Afghan compromise, then, the deal implicitly appears to anticipate the endgame the insurgents themselves have consistently articulated since 2001: a Taliban reconquest of the country. David Petraeus, Foreign Affairs, 1 Apr. 2020 Make no mistake, the Taliban reconquest is going to be brutal for many, particularly women. Ryan Cooper, The Week, 14 Aug. 2021 But France continued to pursue reconquest, and President Thomas Jefferson, caving to pressure from the French, instituted a trade embargo. Marlene L. Daut, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2023 Another Pueblo activist, Justine Teba, said the protests over conquistador monuments around New Mexico this year also drew on the example of the successful drive undertaken over the past decade to discontinue Santa Fe’s annual celebration of the 1692 Spanish reconquest of New Mexico. Simon Romero, New York Times, 27 Sep. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reconquest.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1548, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of reconquest was in 1548

Dictionary Entries Near reconquest

Cite this Entry

“Reconquest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reconquest. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!