recyclable
Americanadjective
Explanation
Don’t chuck anything recyclable because it can be used again. Glass bottles and paper are recyclable. Styrofoam and unicorns are not. Recycling happens when things like old paper, plastic food containers, and metal cans are turned into something new. Recyclable paper, for example, might find a new life as a cardboard box, and recyclable soda bottles might be transformed into plastic benches and tables. Not everything is recyclable, and people who care about reducing consumption and pollution will often make sure they're buying food and other goods in recyclable containers.
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.
Wish-cycling is when consumers dump everything into a single-stream recycling bin, hoping it’s recyclable, even when it isn’t.
From Barron's • May 6, 2026
It is designed to be strong, long-lasting, and recyclable, while requiring far less energy to make than traditional construction materials.
From Science Daily • Jan. 21, 2026
“At the end of the day, a product isn’t recyclable if it doesn’t get recycled, and it isn’t compostable if it doesn’t get composted. Deception is never in the public interest,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 17, 2026
Solar panels are mostly recyclable, made of glass, aluminium, silver, and polymers - but trace toxic metals like lead and cadmium can pollute soil and water if mishandled.
From BBC • Dec. 25, 2025
As if the past was recyclable and all he had to do was collect enough cans to make a fortune and make another start.
From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez
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.
