reinterpretation

American  

[ree-in-tur-pri-tay-shuhn] / ˌri ɪnˌtɜr prɪˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of interpreting something in a new or different way.

2. a new interpretation or understanding of something.

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Explanation

If something is explained or defined in a new or different way, you can say it is a reinterpretation. If you see a rap version of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," that is a reinterpretation. Reinterpretation has as its base the word interpret, which is from the Latin word interpretari, which means "explain or understand." If you are a detective working on a cold case, you have to reexamine the evidence. It is possible that you will catch something that others missed before, leading you to a reinterpretation of the case — and perhaps an arrest.

Example Sentences

And excitingly, our reinterpretation may offer a path to doing this.

From Science Daily • May 22, 2026

Having said all that, many of us were instantly floored by Ronald Moore’s reinterpretation of ABC’s 1978 prime-time space saga, and still point to it as one of TV’s strongest political and social parables.

From Salon • May 5, 2026

Debates continue today under that reinterpretation of the 1927 regulation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 8, 2026

The reinterpretation of Malinche has been decades in the making.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 25, 2026

The idea of discovery simply could not take hold in a culture so preoccupied with Biblical chronology and liturgical repetition on the one hand, and secular ideas of rebirth, recurrence and reinterpretation on the other.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton