reclamation

[rek-luh-mey-shuhn]

noun

1. the reclaiming of desert, marshy, or submerged areas or other wasteland for cultivation or other use.

2. the act or process of reclaiming.

3. the state of being reclaimed.

4. the process or industry of deriving usable materials from waste, by-products, etc.

reclamation

/ ˌrɛkləˈmeɪʃən /

noun

1. the conversion of desert, marsh, or other waste land into land suitable for cultivation

2. the recovery of useful substances from waste products

3. the act of reclaiming or state of being reclaimed

Other Word Forms

• nonreclamation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of reclamation¹

1525–35, in sense “a protest”; < Middle French < Latin reclāmātiōn- (stem of reclāmātiō ) crying out against, equivalent to reclāmāt ( us ) (past participle of reclāmāre; reclaim ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

“The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox” culminates with Amanda having built a life of purpose, marrying and becoming a mother, all parts of her story’s reclamation.

From Salon

Steinberg is an act of reclamation for Knox, and she believes Van Patten captured the nuances that so many people missed when she was a regular presence in the tabloids.

From Los Angeles Times

It was both reclamation and addendum, metaphors I carried into my future.

From Los Angeles Times

In the face of escalating fascism, education demands reclamation as a moral and political project whose task is to cultivate the knowledge, skills, values and civic courage necessary to challenge injustice and imagine alternative futures.

From Salon

Now, the 28-year-old right-hander is set to become a Dodgers reclamation project.

From Los Angeles Times