recharge
Americanverb (used with object)
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to charge again with electricity.
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Informal. to refresh or restore; revitalize.
verb (used without object)
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to make a new charge, especially to attack again.
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Informal. to revive or restore energy, stamina, enthusiasm, etc.
noun
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an act or instance of recharging.
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Geology. the processes by which groundwater is absorbed into the zone of saturation.
verb
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to cause (an accumulator, capacitor, etc) to take up and store electricity again
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to revive or renew (one's energies) (esp in recharge one's batteries )
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rechargesimple
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rechargessimple
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have rechargedperfect
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has rechargedperfect
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are rechargingprogressive
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am rechargingprogressive
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is rechargingprogressive
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have been rechargingperfect progressive
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has been rechargingperfect progressive
Past
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rechargedsimple
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had rechargedperfect
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was rechargingprogressive
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were rechargingprogressive
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had been rechargingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of recharge
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English: “to reload (a vessel)”; see re-, charge
Explanation
When you recharge something, you bring it back to life or reenergize it. You might charge your cell phone in the morning and then recharge it later in the day. If you can charge your electronics (or provide them with electrical energy), you can also recharge them when that energy is depleted. In addition to your camera battery and laptop, sometimes you need to recharge yourself, or take a break so you can become energized again. Less commonly, recharge is used to mean "refill a glass," and the original meaning, in the fifteenth century, was "to reload a vessel."
Vocabulary lists containing recharge
Earth Science - Middle School
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Earth Science - High School
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Earth Science - Introductory
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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.
At the same time, Southern California cities have been investing in projects to capture stormwater and recharge groundwater as they seek to rely less on water imported from Northern California and the Colorado River.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026
He reputedly then moved into a monastery for three months to recharge, taking only books and living without a phone or access to the internet.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026
By learning how to recharge those tiny engines, scientists may be opening a new path in the fight against dementia.
From Science Daily • May 16, 2026
She pushed through her last mile and collapsed into bed to recharge for what lay ahead: two days at a conference, where she delivered a keynote address and networked with prospective customers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026
To Isidore he said, “What did you do, try to recharge its battery? Or locate a short in it?”
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
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.
