recap
1 Americanverb (used with object)
noun
noun
verb (used with or without object)
verb
noun
-
informal recapitulation
-
another name for retread
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of recap1
First recorded in 1935–40; re- + cap 1
Origin of recap2
First recorded in 1945–50; by shortening
Explanation
To recap is to briefly explain something by giving just the main points or details. You might write a popular blog in which you recap episodes of your favorite TV shows. Some shows on television begin with a recap of the previous episode, so viewers can refresh their memories about what's happening in the story so far. A book review is sometimes nothing more than a recap of the plot. And if you miss an important meeting of your Spanish club, the secretary's minutes will recap what was discussed. Recap is a shortened form of recapitulate, "summarize," from the Latin recapitulare, "go over the main points again."
Vocabulary lists containing recap
"The Latehomecomer," Vocabulary from the memoir excerpt
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"The Latehomecomer" by Kao Kalia Yang
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The Unfinished
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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:
Before to Tuesday’s vote, CoC chair Ben Kay gave a recap of measures the board took to administer an impartial evaluation that scored the county higher than the city on handling homelessness issues.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
She now watches Owens’s show, on every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and creates recap videos on her Instagram page, which has amassed nearly 100,000 followers and is regularly reposted by Owens herself.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
To recap: Purcell punishes a plaintiff in voting cases for being too late to court.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Uber's annual lost and found index, the company said, adding that it was using the opportunity to recap trends over the years.
From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026
“This is an abomination!” said one of the committee members, watching a recap of the Lemoncello Library Olympics’ first day of competition on the Book Network’s website.
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
Message boards erupted, and Neal, the YouTuber who regularly recapped “Bachelor” episodes on his show, dug into the paternity fray.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
There was some very uplifting, and very un-Traitors-esque music, as we recapped some moments from each of the finalists' time in the castle.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2025
Every lyric is recapped as a presumed confession, combed for autobiographical Easter eggs and compared, true crime Reddit-style, to the forensic files of her life and loves.
From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2024
The first “Rebel Moon,” released on Netflix in December, made audiences endure a gantlet of narrative groundwork that’s fairly inessential and recapped here.
From New York Times ● Apr. 19, 2024
I recapped all of this to Trevor, who now stared at me with a pained expression on his face.
From "From the Desk of Zoe Washington" by Janae Marks
A couple of posts later, Zach Witkoff added another message, a video recapping the “World Liberty Forum” held at Mar-a-Lago in February.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
“We still believe this will be the year of the IPO,” Blackstone President Jon Gray said on a video recapping the firm’s first-quarter results.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 13, 2026
As DA Davidson analyst Clark Wright says in his note recapping Phreesia’s fourth quarter earnings, “there are several moving pieces to the story.”
From Barron's ● Mar. 31, 2026
It is worth recapping United's last three games.
From BBC ● Nov. 24, 2025
It was late that night when Katherine and Jimmy tucked the girls into their beds and collapsed onto their own bed, but they stayed up even later laughing and gossiping, recapping the family gathering.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
