recreate

1 of 2

verb (1)

rec·​re·​ate ˈre-krē-ˌāt 

recreated; recreating; recreates

transitive verb

: to give new life or freshness to : refresh

supporters of preservation hope to recreate the architectural splendor that the old movie theater had when it first opened

… it became late enough to suggest tea. We had got through one brew, and the three great minds were recreating themselves with cake, when there came another knock at the door …

—G. Dosset

intransitive verb

: to take recreation

an old summer resort where families have been recreating for over a century

recreative

ˈre-krē-ˌā-tiv 

adjective

re-create

2 of 2

verb (2)

re-cre·​ate ˌrē-krē-ˈāt 

variants or recreate

re-created or recreated; re-creating or recreating; re-creates

transitive verb

: to create again

especially : to form anew in the imagination

re-creatable

ˌrē-krē-ˈā-tə-bəl 

adjective

re-creation

ˌrē-krē-ˈā-shən 

noun

re-creative

ˌrē-krē-ˈā-tiv 

adjective

re-creator

ˌrē-krē-ˈā-tər 

noun

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• freshen
• recharge
• refresh
• refreshen
• regenerate
• rejuvenate
• renew
• repair
• restore
• resuscitate
• revitalize
• revive
• revivify

Examples of recreate in a Sentence

Verb (2)

The movie set re-creates a London street of 1895.

The scene of the crime was re-created based upon police photographs.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The Dutch artist, who has never visited Mexico, was not satisfied with only re-creating the center of the capital of the empire. —WIRED, 17 Sep. 2023

Original molding was painstakingly adjusted or re-created. —Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 15 Sep. 2023

The network spent an additional $1.9 million to re-create the TV home where America came to know Mike, Carol, Greg, Marcia, Peter, Jan, Bobby and Cindy Brady. —Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 12 Sep. 2023

The Toy Story game will take that several steps further, re-creating every play in nearly real time with a big assist from player-tracking technology provided by the NFL’s Next Gen Stats and Beyond Sports. —Rick Porter, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Sep. 2023

Also on display is a copy of Kennedy’s wedding dress, which was painstakingly re-created by a University of Delaware professor, Katya Roelse, and three students. —Rachel Tashjian, Washington Post, 9 Sep. 2023

By re-creating a womb-like environment, swaddling a baby can help soothe them to sleep more soundly for longer. —Samson McDougall, Parents, 8 Sep. 2023

In fact, our colleagues at Delish even attempted to re-create it. —House Beautiful, 7 Sep. 2023

A lot of live performances in pop music are trying to re-create the experience of listening to the album, Provenzano said. —Ada Tseng, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English recreaten, borrowed from Latin recreāre "to make new, restore, revive" — more at recreation

Verb (2)

re- + create entry 1

First Known Use

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Verb (2)

1587, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

recreate

1 of 2 verb

rec·​re·​ate ˈrek-rē-ˌāt 

recreated; recreating

1

: to give new life or freshness to

2

: to take recreation

recreative

-ˌāt-iv

adjective

re-create

2 of 2 verb

re-cre·​ate

ˌrē-krē-ˈāt

: to create again especially in the imagination

re-creation

-ˈā-shən

noun

re-creative

-ˈāt-iv

adjective