reactivate

verb

re·​ac·​ti·​vate (ˌ)rē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 

reactivated; reactivating; reactivates

1

transitive : to activate (something or someone) again

… turning the dough (gently folding it over onto itself between the first and second rises) reactivates the yeast without pressing out as much air.

—Erika Bruce

: such as

a(1)

: to restore (an organized group such as a military unit) to an active state (as from a state of disorganization or deactivation)

(2)

: to restore (an individual) to active duty

He was reactivated after 9/11 and sent to Afghanistan for a year.

—Pam Kragen

(3)

: to cause (something such as an industrial plant, society, program, or commission) to function again after a suspension of activity

Started in 1987 and reactivated two years ago, the Leadership Shelby County program takes the participants through the process of developing and launching efforts to improve the community.

—John Walker

b

psychology : to cause (something such as a repressed complex) to reappear in consciousness or behavior

Feelings of inferiority were reactivated by the experience.

c

medical : to cause (a quiescent disease) to become active again

tuberculosis that was reactivated by fatigue

2

intransitive : to become active again

… a painful nerve and skin disorder that occurs when the immune system weakens in older people and the virus, which never entirely leaves the body, reactivates.

—Alison L. Sprout

Examples of reactivate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This trend underscores the crucial role of content creators in driving interest and engagement in gaming communities, acting as catalysts for reactivating dormant users and amplifying the game's reach. —David Moon (junseo Moon), Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024

In an emergency move last month, the city closed the pathway after wet winter weather reactivated an existing landslide. —Barbara Henry, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Feb. 2024

Although Israel has reactivated one of the three water pipelines that were turned off following the total blockade, its supply has been reduced by one-fifth since October 22 according to the UN. —Laura Paddison, CNN, 24 Oct. 2023

Performance improves further if the memory for the sequence is reactivated during slow-wave sleep—by, say, a playback of tones the person listened to while learning each finger movement. —Ingrid Wickelgren, Scientific American, 20 Feb. 2024

In a letter first shared with NBC News on Monday, the group of legislators called on House and Senate leadership to remove language written by GOP lawmakers related to a key House spending bill that demanded the program be reactivated. —Kimmy Yam, NBC News, 22 Jan. 2024

The site, under Musk, reactivated Trump’s account in late 2022. —Jonathan O'Connell, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024

Record-setting, winter storms had reactivated an existing landslide problem, causing part of the trail to collapse and forcing the closure, city officials said at the time. —Barbara Henry, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Feb. 2024

Before the current, wider war, the Ukrainian government considered reactivating some S-200s and retrofitting them with the same new seeker Ukrainian industry had developed for the smaller S-125 air-defense system. —David Axe, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1854, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

reactivate

transitive verb

re·​ac·​ti·​vate (ˈ)rē-ˈak-tə-ˌvāt 

reactivated; reactivating

: to activate again : cause to be again active or more active: as

a

: to cause (as a repressed complex) to reappear in consciousness or behavior

persecution feelings reactivated by new social failures

b

: to cause (a quiescent disease) to become active again in an individual

a herpes infection reactivated by physical and emotional stresses

c

: to restore complement to (an inactivated serum) by addition of fresh normal serum