redirect
Americanverb (used with object)
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to direct again.
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to change the direction or focus of.
He redirected the children's energies toward building a sand castle instead of throwing sand at each other.
adjective
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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redirectsimple
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redirectssimple
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have redirectedperfect
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has redirectedperfect
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am redirectingprogressive
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are redirectingprogressive
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is redirectingprogressive
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have been redirectingperfect progressive
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has been redirectingperfect progressive
Past
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redirectedsimple
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had redirectedperfect
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was redirectingprogressive
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were redirectingprogressive
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had been redirectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of redirect
Explanation
When you redirect something, you point it in a different direction. If your dog keeps licking your friends' knees, you might have to redirect her attention to a squeaky toy. Beavers can famously redirect the flow of water in a stream or river by building dams that divert the flow in a new direction. The very best elementary school teachers are experts at redirecting the attention of young kids, like when a music teacher redirects a class's energy into an enthusiastic round of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." The direct part of redirect comes from the Latin dirigere, "set straight."
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:
Tighter enforcement could redirect ore produced within the tin-metal producer’s concessions away from illegal collectors and competing smelters and back into the company’s formal supply chain, the analyst says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Police may close roads, establish perimeters, kettle crowds, redirect traffic, block movement, and call those acts public order.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
Those proteins spread through the host cell and redirect its molecular systems, turning the cell into a production site for new virus particles.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
"It will not be possible to redirect the entire harvest to European and other markets," Aramyan told AFP, warning of overproduction, bankruptcies and possible social strain.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
Mark Antony, ready to redirect his attention to the Parthian campaign, moved his family to Athens to set up his headquarters.
From "Sterling Biographies®: Cleopatra: Egypt's Last and Greatest Queen" by Susan Blackaby
Spirit’s website redirects visitors to a landing page about its shutdown, which advises its ticket holders against traveling to airports.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Thompson, who gained notoriety for his role winning a rape conviction against Harvey Weinstein, purchased the rights to the domain name “patconnolly4judge.com,” which now redirects to one of the commission’s admonishments of Connolly.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2026
Microsoft shared that it’s sacrificing Azure growth as it redirects compute capacity internally to improve Copilot.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 9, 2026
Software stocks could recover by developing their own AI products or if a slowdown in AI infrastructure spending redirects investment back to the sector.
From Barron's ● Jan. 15, 2026
It redirects our attention to the great source and fountainhead of human life.
From The Pivot of Civilization by Sanger, Margaret
"At a certain point, we wondered whether that same current control could be redirected from cells to molecules, replacing the neuron-facing electrodes with ring-electrode pairs that could localize pH for DNA synthesis. It worked."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
Engineers at L’Acoustics recognized the algorithm had a live sound application and redirected it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
He said the drive that pushed him earlier in his career has been redirected somewhere else, but it took years of practice and being surrounded by an older generation with wisdom to stop keeping score.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
It’s that China’s weak consumer economy has redirected discretionary spending toward lower-cost emotional rewards.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
That his life has been so wholly redirected astounds him.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
The prime minister's spokesman insisted the policy would be funded by redirecting "savings" identified by departments to cover the cost of the ID scheme.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
These actions included things like changing the title on bank accounts and other property, redirecting household bills, canceling credit cards, consolidating retirement accounts, making Roth conversions and giving away money.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026
“That lays the groundwork for tomorrow, when it could be stopping and boarding ships, redirecting them to clear customs on the mainland or turning them back for failing ‘inspection.’”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026
While many of the videos AFP examined are no longer live, other accounts are still sharing the AI-generated clips redirecting users to products.
From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026
“But I’m sure once you take her out, she’ll forget all about it. Mrs. Kelly says it’s just a matter of redirecting her attention.”
From "Al Capone Does My Shirts" by Gennifer Choldenko
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.
