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reenforce

or re-en·force

[ree-uh n-fawrs, -fohrs]
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verb (used with object), re·en·forced, re·en·forc·ing, noun
  1. reinforce.
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reinforce

[ree-in-fawrs, -fohrs]
verb (used with object), re·in·forced, re·in·forc·ing.
  1. to strengthen with some added piece, support, or material: to reinforce a wall.
  2. to strengthen (a military force) with additional personnel, ships, or aircraft: to reinforce a garrison.
  3. to strengthen; make more forcible or effective: to reinforce efforts.
  4. to augment; increase: to reinforce a supply.
  5. Psychology. to strengthen the probability of (a response to a given stimulus) by giving or withholding a reward.
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noun
  1. something that reinforces.
  2. a metal band on the rear part of the bore of a gun, where the explosion occurs.
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Also reenforce, re-enforce.

Origin of reinforce

1590–1600; re- + inforce, alteration of enforce
Related formsre·in·forc·er, nounself-re·in·forc·ing, adjectiveun·re·in·forced, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for reenforce

Historical Examples

  • And a big diamond glinted as though to reenforce the remark.

    In to the Yukon

    William Seymour Edwards

  • There was no time even to call a single man of the Folk to reenforce him.

    Darkness and Dawn

    George Allan England

  • Dallas called, moving a kitchen table to reenforce the lock.

    When a Man Marries

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • In order to reenforce the armies and to push the war through, there was plainly but one course to be followed—conscription.

    Abraham Lincoln and the Union

    Nathaniel W. Stephenson

  • Moreover, a new factor had come in to reenforce the soldier's instinctive preference for gentlemen over shopkeepers.

    The Canadian Dominion

    Oscar D. Skelton

British Dictionary definitions for reenforce

reinforce

verb (tr)
  1. to give added strength or support to
  2. to give added emphasis to; stress, support, or increasehis rudeness reinforced my determination
  3. to give added support to (a military force) by providing more men, supplies, etc
  4. psychol to reward an action or response of (a human or animal) so that it becomes more likely to occur again
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Derived Formsreinforcement, noun

Word Origin

C17: from obsolete renforce, from French renforcer; see re- + inforce enforce
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for reenforce

reinforce

v.

c.1600, originally in military sense, from re- "again" + enforce (cf. re-enforce). Related: Reinforced; reinforcing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
reenforce in Medicine

reinforce

(rē′ĭn-fôrs′)
v.
  1. To give more force or effectiveness to something; strengthen.
  2. To reward an individual, especially an experimental subject, with a reinforcer subsequent to a desired response or performance.
  3. To stimulate a response by means of a reinforcer.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.