recast
Americanverb (used with object)
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recasts,
present (3rd person singular)
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recast,
past participle, past
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recasting
present participle
noun
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recasts
plural
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a recasting.
-
a new form produced by recasting.
verb
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(often foll by as) to give (someone or something) a new role, function, or character
recast themselves as moderate and kind
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(often foll by as) to cast (an actor or actress) again or in a different part
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to cast new actors or actresses for a production of (a play, film, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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recastsimple
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recastssimple
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have recastperfect
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has recastperfect
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am recastingprogressive
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are recastingprogressive
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is recastingprogressive
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have been recastingperfect progressive
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has been recastingperfect progressive
Past
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recastsimple
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had recastperfect
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was recastingprogressive
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were recastingprogressive
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had been recastingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of recast
Explanation
"Let's start over." That's what someone might say when he or she needs to recast something, meaning "to make major changes that make something seem very different or even brand new." When you recast something, you aren’t just improving it slightly — something that is recast typically involves significant changes to the original. As it applies to actors' parts in a movie, television show, or play, to recast a part means finding a different actor to play it. When you recast a metal item, like a piece of jewelry, the item is melted down completely and then remade in a new form. When teachers get blank stares from students, they recast their questions to make them less confusing.
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:
The White House ballroom was recast as a security project; now the arch has been too.
From Slate ● Sep. 25, 2026
“It’s unfortunate that something so personal and happy can be recast as something political or sinister simply because of who someone is,” they wrote, adding, “Generosity doesn’t automatically come with an agenda.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
"It's unfortunate that something so personal and happy can be recast as something political or sinister simply because of who someone is or where they come from," the post added.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
“My protected speech, civic engagement, public records activity and advocacy were recast as misconduct,” she added.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
Later scientific revolutions have transformed our knowledge, but they have not melted down and recast our idea of science.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Her confidante immediately hastens off to write “The Tears of the Comet,” an allegorical tale that decorously recasts certain incidents from his stay.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
It recasts every piece of art by every artist throughout the single-story space as equally relevant.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026
The study also recasts homeobox gene TPRX2 thatencodes DNA-binding proteins.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 6, 2024
The modern-language adaptation is by Soeren Voima, an authors’ collective, and it recasts Shakespeare’s darkest play as an outer-space soap opera with echoes of “Star Wars” and “Doctor Who.”
From New York Times ● Dec. 15, 2022
But it recasts these elements with the vigour of a true art and in accordance with its special tendencies.
From The Romanization of Roman Britain by F. (Francis) Haverfield
The response is as stark as the crisis: recasting its industrial base as the West’s arsenal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
RidgeAlloy is made by remelting aluminum recovered from used products and recasting it into a new alloy designed to meet the strength, ductility and crash safety requirements of structural vehicle components.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 10, 2026
Playwrights addressed the polis not by dramatizing current events but by recasting tales from the mythological and historic past to sharpen critical thinking on contemporary concerns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2025
That is why he is recasting himself as a unifying figure - someone prepared to reach out across party lines to work with others to get things done.
From BBC ● May 4, 2025
Hamilton was a musical celebration of America’s history and diversity, recasting our understanding of the roles minorities play in our national story, highlighting the importance of women who’d long been overshadowed by powerful men.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
