reprise
Americannoun
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Law. Usually reprises. an annual deduction, duty, or payment out of a manor or estate, as an annuity or the like.
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Music.
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a repetition.
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a return to the first theme or subject.
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verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Etymology
Origin of reprise
1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French: a taking back, Old French, noun use of feminine past participle of reprendre to take back < Latin reprehendere to reprehend
Explanation
Reprise means "repeat an earlier role." If you’re asked to reprise your role as "kid entertainer" at the annual family reunion, that means people want you to do it again this year. Early on, reprise was a part in a song or other musical composition that is repeated. The word still carries that meaning, but now it's more likely to be used as a verb to describe an action or part that is repeated, often a performance. For example, if you played a role in a wildly successful film that is going to have a sequel, you would reprise your role. The word comes from the French word repris, meaning "take back."
Vocabulary lists containing reprise
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This Week In Popular Culture: August 17–23, 2019
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This Week In Culture: August 1–6, 2020
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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.
Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Stanley Tucci and Emily Blunt reprise their roles from the 2006 comedy in this flimsy fashion-world sequel.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026
Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest will reprise their roles as Frances and Jet Owens, the aunts who raised Sally and Gillian.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 20, 2026
While the TV series is welcoming many new faces, it will see Warwick Davis reprise his role as Professor Filius Flitwick.
From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026
Who knows, she may reprise that role this weekend when Ryan Gosling hosts.
From Salon • Mar. 6, 2026
It had been decades since a White House Victory Garden had been planted, on Eleanor Roosevelt’s watch, and no one seemed much interested in a reprise.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
