rejuvenate
Americanverb (used with object)
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rejuvenates,
present (3rd person singular)
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rejuvenated,
past participle, past
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rejuvenating
present participle
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to make young again; restore to youthful vigor, appearance, etc..
That vacation has certainly rejuvenated him.
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to restore to a former state; make fresh or new again.
to rejuvenate an old sofa.
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Physical Geography.
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to renew the activity, erosive power, etc., of (a stream) by uplift or by removal of a barrier in the stream bed.
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to impress again the characters of youthful topography on (a region) by the action of rejuvenated streams.
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verb (used without object)
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rejuvenates,
present (3rd person singular)
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rejuvenated,
past participle, past
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rejuvenating
present participle
verb
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to give new youth, restored vitality, or youthful appearance to
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(usually passive) geography
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to cause (a river) to begin eroding more vigorously to a new lower base level, usually because of uplift of the land
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to cause (a land surface) to develop youthful features
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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rejuvenationnoun
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rejuvenatornoun
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rejuvenativeadjective
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unrejuvenatedadjective
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unrejuvenatingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rejuvenatesimple
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rejuvenatessimple
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have rejuvenatedperfect
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has rejuvenatedperfect
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am rejuvenatingprogressive
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are rejuvenatingprogressive
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is rejuvenatingprogressive
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have been rejuvenatingperfect progressive
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has been rejuvenatingperfect progressive
Past
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rejuvenatedsimple
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had rejuvenatedperfect
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was rejuvenatingprogressive
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were rejuvenatingprogressive
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had been rejuvenatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rejuvenate
First recorded in 1800–10; re- + Latin juven(is) “young” + -ate 1; see also young
Explanation
When you make something young again or give it more life and energy, you rejuvenate it. For example, you can often rejuvenate a not-quite-dead plant, bringing it back to health with some water and some TLC. One way to remember the word rejuvenate is to pick it apart to its heart, the juve. This juve sounds like juvenile — which refers to youth. Add the prefix re, which means "again," and the "ate" suffix, which stands for "do or make." Put them all together and you get "make young again" — the meaning of rejuvenate. We all want to be younger, as witnessed by all the ads for products that promise to rejuvenate us through special cosmetics or foods or exercise equipment.
Vocabulary lists containing rejuvenate
Brave New World
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100 SAT words Beginning with "R"
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Prisoner B-3087
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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:
Artificial intelligence, for example, has the potential to unlock significant cost savings, increase revenue across advertising, and rejuvenate intellectual property.
From Barron's ● May 1, 2026
Scott hopes this shuttling around of his stem cells, a procedure that costs patients $10,000, will rejuvenate his 82-year-old body and ward off the effects of aging.
From Slate ● Mar. 30, 2026
He brought on dozens of former Nikola staffers to rejuvenate it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026
If I don’t have practice, then that’s typically what I’m doing, cleaning my house and starting to rejuvenate my body differently.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2026
Spirits flurried around inside her to rejuvenate whatever damage had been done as she rose and took an uneasy step forward.
From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older
We need a foreign-policy approach that rejuvenates our alliances and creates enduring and mutually beneficial ties around the world.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
"Niacin treatment rejuvenates immune cells so they can do what they are supposed to do, attack and kill the cancer cells. I see it as an ongoing 'battle for the brain'."
From Science Daily ● Jun. 22, 2026
Pit performances are arduous, he said, but “when you see the faces of the kids coming down and hanging over the pit, you know it’s their first experience, it definitely rejuvenates you time after time.”
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 19, 2023
“It rips up the oldest of trees. It sends the river off into a new direction. It re-channelizes the flood plain and rejuvenates everything and gives the river a new lease on life.”
From New York Times ● Aug. 2, 2022
All my discoveries make headlines, but the most controversial is a soap that rejuvenates aging skin.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
But publishing her first novel in 2023 — “This Bird Has Flown,” a charming bestseller about a one-hit wonder looking for a comeback — rejuvenated Hoffs’ devotion to songwriting.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
However, after a halftime break honoring Sparks and Liberty legends like Lisa Leslie and Teresa Weatherspoon, among many others at half court, L.A. was rejuvenated for the final 20 minutes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026
While some people were driven crazy by spending hours in proximity to family, Kahan was creatively rejuvenated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026
Wales, who are staring at a third successive Wooden Spoon, have a six-day turnaround when they host a rejuvenated Scotland who beat England 31-20 on Saturday.
From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2026
After three weeks with my comrades I felt rejuvenated, and I was far more comfortable in court this time in a suit.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
In West Bengal, Salim insists the party is again "regrouping, repositioning and rejuvenating".
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
“The Lawrence Tree” is emblematic of O’Keeffe at a pivotal and rejuvenating moment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
The plans include banning duplicate listings, delisting underperforming companies, and rejuvenating a smaller exchange for start-ups.
From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026
Every day of your multigenerational vacation probably won’t be as rejuvenating as you perhaps had hoped.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 10, 2025
“It was Edward’s idea to go. He thought he might find it rejuvenating, or so he said. His health had always been so delicate, you see.”
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
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.
