recite
Americanverb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
-
to recite a lesson or part of a lesson for a teacher.
-
to recite or repeat something from memory.
verb
-
to repeat (a poem, passage, etc) aloud from memory before an audience, teacher, etc
-
(tr) to give a detailed account of
-
(tr) to enumerate (examples, etc)
Related Words
See relate.
Other Word Forms
- prerecite verb (used with object)
- recitable adjective
- reciter noun
- unrecited adjective
- well-recited adjective
Etymology
Origin of recite
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English reciten, from Latin recitāre “to read aloud,” equivalent to re- + citāre “to summon”; re-, cite 1
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.
As the lights lowered, she thanked the crowd, the white flower tucked in her hair catching the light as she recited her first poem, “White Sage.”
From Los Angeles Times
Jeremy recognized the poem; it was the one he had recited on the night he hatched the egg.
From Literature
But being ready for school involves a lot more than a child’s ability to count or recite their ABCs.
From Los Angeles Times
Jacques watched Christopher as he recited the way through the maze back to her; back and forth they went, until he had it like a song, etched in his mind.
From Literature
So Isaac and Jacob carry Father up to the deck, and then we recite the Kaddish, the prayer for the dead.
From Literature
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.
