Prefix · repetition / reversal
Signals doing something again or returning to a previous state: redo, return, reopen.
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
Re- has two closely related jobs. With action verbs it means doing something again: redo, rewrite, reopen, rebuild. It also signals returning to a state or place: return, recover, restore. The core idea is always a second time or a movement backward.
Some words that look like re- + root are actually single Latin words where re- cannot be removed: receive, relate, remain, respond, result. A quick test: drop re- and check whether the remaining letters form an independent English word. If they do not ("ceive," "late" in the Latin sense), re- is part of the root, not an active prefix.
Attach directly before the verb with no spelling change:
Written solid in modern English (no hyphen) in most cases. A hyphen is used when the combined form might be confused with another word: re-cover (cover again) vs recover (get better).
re-/riː/ or /rɪ/
Tap the button to hear how the prefix sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.
Receive, relate, remain, respond are Latin words where re- is part of the original root, not an active prefix meaning "again."
Use a hyphen only when the combined form would be confused with another word: re-cover vs recover. Otherwise, write solid.
A trick to remember it
When you see re- before a verb you already know, try "again": reopen = open again, rewrite = write again. This works for the vast majority of re- words. The exception is Latin words like receive and relate where re- is fixed to the root.
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
After the flood, the town had to ___ the damaged community center from scratch.
Exercise 3 · Pick the right one
Which word does NOT use re- as an active "again" prefix?
The prefix re- signals doing something again or returning to a previous state: redo, return, reopen. In Spanish it usually maps to re-.
The prefix re- is pronounced /riː/ or /rɪ/. For example, "redo".
"do" becomes "redo". It is a typical example of the re- prefix.
un-, re-, pre-, dis-, over-, in-... every beginning you need to unlock thousands of English words at once.