replenish
Americanverb (used with object)
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replenishes,
present (3rd person singular)
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replenished,
past participle, past
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replenishing
present participle
-
to make full or complete again, as by supplying what is lacking, used up, etc..
to replenish one's stock of food.
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to supply (a fire, stove, etc.) with fresh fuel.
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to fill again or anew.
verb
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to make full or complete again by supplying what has been used up or is lacking
-
to put fresh fuel on (a fire)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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replenishsimple
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replenishessimple
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have replenishedperfect
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has replenishedperfect
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am replenishingprogressive
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are replenishingprogressive
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is replenishingprogressive
-
have been replenishingperfect progressive
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has been replenishingperfect progressive
Past
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replenishedsimple
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had replenishedperfect
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was replenishingprogressive
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were replenishingprogressive
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had been replenishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of replenish
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English replenisshen, from Middle French repleniss-, long stem of replenir “to fill,” Old French, equivalent to re- re- + plenir “to fill” (derivative of plein, from Latin plēnus full 1 )
Explanation
To replenish something is to refill it. If you have a pet pooch, you’re probably obligated to replenish his food bowl to avoid being barked at incessantly. Use replenish when talking about something valuable or desirable, such as money or food. For example, you might discuss replenishing your bank account, but you wouldn’t speak of replenishing a trash can. You can also use replenish in a joking way to show that something is of value to you; by noting that the jar of jellybeans on your desk needs to be replenished, you indicate that you require jellybeans to survive your day at the office. We get that.
Vocabulary lists containing replenish
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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Essential Academic Vocabulary for Middle School Students, List 5
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The Hobbit
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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:
Canada offered support Thursday to boost Ukraine's air defenses and help replenish its drone stocks, as the countries pledged to deepen their alliance during a visit by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
It needs to replenish its depleted stores of advanced defensive missiles — a process that has only just begun, and which Congress has not yet funded.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
The “practical mechanism” for using future Venezuelan output to replenish the SPR “is not yet clear, given differences in crude quality and storage requirements,” UBS strategists said in a note.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
More snow feeding into the Colorado River would also replenish the reservoirs of Lake Powell and Lake Mead, easing drought across the Southwest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
For her services, Bibi received no income but was given meals, provisions, and sufficient meters of cotton at every October holiday to replenish her wardrobe at an inexpensive tailor.
From "Interpreter of Maladies" by Jhumpa Lahiri
It could also test whether frequent comet activity replenishes the dust, a process studied by Steward researcher Virginie Faramaz-Gorka, who is also a co-author on the paper.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 17, 2025
In the short term, Yorkshire Water will be hoping the measures announced today will be enough to slow the fall in reservoir levels until the rain returns and replenishes supplies.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2025
The cold rejuvenates fields and orchards, mainstays of the region’s economy, and the snow replenishes freshwater streams.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 5, 2024
FEMA’s funding restrictions will remain in place until Congress replenishes the disaster fund by approving either a fiscal 2024 budget or special funding for FEMA.
From Scientific American ● Sep. 28, 2023
He rewards them for their kindness with a basket full of fresh bread and butter that magically replenishes itself and a hollow stone with a flame inside that never burns out.
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
“Unless inventories are replenished, the world will start from a weaker position when the next shock comes,” the IMF said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
The UK's emergency stockpile of PPE, meant to last at least 15 weeks before being replenished, was running out by the end of March 2020 as demand from hospitals soared.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
“Pumping more groundwater than is sustainably replenished is not only negligent, but dangerous to the American Desert Southwest,” he said in the joint statement with other opponents of the project.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
All of that helped to keep physical oil supply shortages at a minimum, even as global inventories have declined and need to be replenished.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 18, 2026
He always looked fresh, rested, as though being alone with his music had replenished him.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
It would also have to cover things like paying for vacations, replenishing an emergency fund if it’s been tapped, and setting aside money in a health savings or college account.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
We’re meant to understand this as a kind of replenishing.
From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2026
Blood has a shelf life of 35 days, so stocks need constant replenishing.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
He said this year had seen 25 percent less snow replenishing the surface of the glaciers compared to the 2010-2020 figures.
From Barron's ● Jun. 27, 2026
Conversely, when a rain squall is replenishing your fresh-water supplies, you also know that the humidity will affect your cured provisions and that some will probably go bad, turning pasty and green.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
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.
