readjust
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
readjustsimple
-
readjustssimple
-
have readjustedperfect
-
has readjustedperfect
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am readjustingprogressive
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are readjustingprogressive
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is readjustingprogressive
-
have been readjustingperfect progressive
-
has been readjustingperfect progressive
Past
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readjustedsimple
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had readjustedperfect
-
was readjustingprogressive
-
were readjustingprogressive
-
had been readjustingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of readjust
Explanation
You could readjust your TV antenna, your thinking, or the collar of your shirt. Whatever it is, when you readjust something, you make slight changes again and again until you get it right. When you adjust something, you make a change in order to improve something, such as a driver adjusting the side-view mirror on a car in order to see other cars better. So, when you add the prefix re-, it means "to adjust over and over." In the case of the mirror, you would readjust its angle until you can see perfectly well from your seat in the car.
Vocabulary lists containing readjust
Power Prefix: re-
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: re-
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Power Prefix: Re-
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
What followed were weeks of rehab and therapy as he tried to readjust to life back home in Ukraine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
“I’m very optimistic we won’t end up in court. But I will say, David and Anthony having to readjust their life, because of what this guy did, is unacceptable,” Dreiling said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
If that happens, investors must buy the stock at those put strikes, or readjust the position with some trading.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2025
Swash says society needs to "readjust" how it sees young dads.
From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2025
I readjust the headphones and start walking back half a block.
From "Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher
Here are some of the things to watch as the oil market readjusts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
Strategic petroleum reserves designed to calm markets after a major supply shock may remain unused because the market calms and readjusts on its own.
From Barron's ● Nov. 20, 2025
The little help he’s able to offer when he readjusts a fallen flag makes his day.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2024
As he readjusts his pyjamas, his left hand reveals three missing fingers.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2023
The tubing running from the oxygen tank behind him to his nose jostles around and he readjusts it, setting it back in its proper place.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Downgrading the highly symbolic parade, which has already been readjusted in recent years, is a blow to that political strategy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 29, 2026
But at the same time the Treasury has readjusted the rateable values of commercial property, meaning some businesses will be faced with bigger bills overall.
From BBC ● Jan. 7, 2026
But that history is constantly being readjusted and reconfigured depending on the narrator’s state of mind and the different versions they’re confronted with when they bump up against other people’s memories and narratives.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2025
The rules are complicated, but the gist is simple: Payments are based on your earnings and family size and readjusted each year.
From New York Times ● Jun. 1, 2023
Annabeth readjusted his cap so it covered his horns.
From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan
In light of the still-ongoing backlash, one may reasonably wonder whether Sony made a severe miscalculation here, and whether it may end up listening to the fans and readjusting accordingly.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
“Investors are readjusting their risk budget right now in a risk-off mood on Friday, and that the AI momentum is now becoming AI anxiety,” said Brian Mulberry, chief market strategist at Zacks Investment Management.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 27, 2026
Current economic policymakers could "hardly guide the work of readjusting the country's industry as a whole and upgrading it technologically", Kim warned.
From Barron's ● Jan. 20, 2026
Pettit and the two Russian cosmonauts will now spend some time readjusting to gravity.
From BBC ● Apr. 20, 2025
Vitellius the Lar followed, stumbling over his shimmering purple toga and readjusting his sword, telling everyone how he’d predicted Percy’s rise to greatness.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
