recall

[verb ri-kawl; noun ri-kawl, ree-kawl for 7–9, 12, 13; ree-kawl for 10, 11]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR recall ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to bring back from memory; recollect; remember: Can you recall what she said?

to call back; summon to return: The army recalled many veterans.

to bring (one's thoughts, attention, etc.) back to matters previously considered: He recalled his mind from pleasant daydreams to the dull task at hand.

International Law. to summon back and withdraw the office from (a diplomat).

to revoke or withdraw: to recall a promise.

to revive.

noun

an act of recalling.

recollection; remembrance.

the act or possibility of revoking something.

the removal or the right of removal of a public official from office by a vote of the people taken upon petition of a specified number of the qualified electors.

Also called callback. a summons by a manufacturer or other agency for the return of goods or a product already shipped to market or sold to consumers but discovered to be defective, contaminated, unsafe, or the like.

a signal made by a vessel to recall one of its boats.

a signal displayed to direct a racing yacht to sail across the starting line again.

Origin of recall

First recorded in 1575–85; re- + call

Related formsre·call·a·ble, adjectiveun·re·call·a·ble, adjectiveun·re·called, adjective

Synonyms for recall

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR recall ON THESAURUS.COM

1. See remember. 5. rescind, retract, recant, repeal; annul. 7. memory. 9. revocation, retraction, repeal, withdrawal, recantation; nullification.

Antonyms for recall

1. forget.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for recalling

summon, remind, evoke, cite, suspend, cancel, dismiss, withdraw, awaken, waken, retrospect, renew, extract, flash, mind, revive, recollect, educe, reminisce, elicit

Examples from the Web for recalling

Contemporary Examples of recalling

I was surprised when she revealed herself as one of my fans, even going so far as recalling the first scene she saw me in.
Porn Keeps Up with the Kardashians: Belle Knox on the Mainstreaming of Adult Stars
Aurora Snow
September 27, 2014
“First we targeted the tanks and the jeeps with IEDs,” he said mechanically, as if recalling a combat briefing.
Did Israel Execute Jihadists in Gaza?
Jesse Rosenfeld
September 7, 2014
I had absolutely no problem in recalling the dream and remembering I needed to do something about it.
Knocking on Heaven's Door: True Stories of Unexplained, Uncanny Experiences at the Hour of Death
Patricia Pearson
August 11, 2014
When Paul McCartney came up with the melody to “Yesterday,” he initially feared that it was an old song that he was recalling.
Did Led Zeppelin Steal ‘Stairway to Heaven’?
Ted Gioia
May 25, 2014
"We were made the foster parents of an icon," says David, recalling the problems in producing the revival.
New York’s Greatest Show Or How They Did Not Screw Up ‘Guys and Dolls’
Ross Wetzsteon
April 6, 2014

Historical Examples of recalling

She was recalling the day she became engaged to Max, and the lost feeling she had had.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
A strange look settled on her face; she was recalling a bitter experience.
Meadow Grass
Alice Brown
"I thank you for recalling me to the world," said Maltravers, eagerly.
Alice, or The Mysteries, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
You will not be offended by my recalling this, after twenty years?'
Little Dorrit
Charles Dickens
Much obliged to you for recalling it so accurately and anticipating me.
Little Dorrit
Charles Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for recalling

recall

verb (tr)

(may take a clause as object) to bring back to mind; recollect; remember

to order to return; call back permanently or temporarilyto recall an ambassador

to revoke or take back

to cause (one's thoughts, attention, etc) to return from a reverie or digression

poetic to restore or revive

noun

the act of recalling or state of being recalled

revocation or cancellation

the ability to remember things; recollection

military (esp formerly) a signal to call back troops, etc, usually a bugle callto sound the recall

US the process by which elected officials may be deprived of office by popular vote

Derived Formsrecallable, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for recalling

recall

1650s, "act of recalling to mind," from recall (v.). In U.S. politics, "removal of an elected official," 1902.

recall

1580s, "to bring back by calling upon," from re- "back, again" + call (v.); in some cases a loan-translation of Middle French rappeler (see repeal (v.)) or Latin revocare (see revoke). Sense of "bring back to memory" is from 1610s. Related: Recalled; recalling.

recalling in Medicine

recall

[rĭ-kôl′]

v.

To remember; recollect.

n.

The ability to remember information or experiences.

Idioms and Phrases with recalling

recall

see beyond recall.