readjust
Americanverb (used with object)
-
readjusts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
readjusted,
past participle, past
-
readjusting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
readjustsimple
-
readjustssimple
-
have readjustedperfect
-
has readjustedperfect
-
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
-
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
Dr Phil Hopkins, intensive care consultant at King's, says feeling the natural elements is part of helping patients readjust when they've been "ripped from their reality" and institutionalised in hospital.
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
“It makes sense for Asian markets—and all markets—to readjust because we are now in a level of uncertainty I can’t remember seeing—and that is greater than during Covid,” Gave said.
From Barron's ● Mar. 9, 2026
The Lakers have used 16 different starting lineups in 29 games and have to readjust their rotation again in Reaves’ absence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 27, 2025
She paused to readjust Chicken’s arms, which clung to her neck in a way that made breathing difficult.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
“The system” readjusts itself so it can always work in some rough way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 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
He pulls the bun up around it like a cardigan, takes a tiny bite, readjusts the bun, and starts all over again.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
By the time they finally readjusted, and dropped deeper in the second half, the damage had been done, as Match of the Day pundit Thomas Hitzlsperger noted.
From BBC ● Feb. 18, 2026
At the time, the “prestige” class of television that had attracted movie stars for years was dying as networks and streamers cut budgets and readjusted their aim for big hits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025
State officials said they will continue to reasses supplies as more storms come, and the allocation could be readjusted in mid-March.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 22, 2024
Most other income-driven repayment plans, where payments are readjusted each year based on earnings and household size, forgive any remaining balance after a set number of years, usually 20.
From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
She readjusted her hair, pinning it back into place and switching out her blouse for one freshly ironed, and strode into her office just in time for Boaz to arrive with his cash box.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Adjustable-rate mortgages offer a lower fixed rate for a period of time—usually between three and 10 years—before readjusting to whatever rates are at the time that period ends.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
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
It fluttered the skirts of the two women and kept them for a while engaged in adjusting, readjusting, tucking in, securing hair-pins and hatpins.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
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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.
