resurrect
Americanverb (used with object)
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to raise from the dead; bring to life again.
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to bring back into use, practice, etc..
to resurrect an ancient custom.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to rise or raise from the dead; bring or be brought back to life
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(tr) to bring back into use or activity; revive
to resurrect an ancient law
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(tr) to renew (one's hopes, etc)
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facetious (tr) (formerly) to exhume and steal (a body) from its grave, esp in order to sell it
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of resurrect
First recorded in 1765–75; back formation from resurrection
Explanation
To resurrect is to bring someone back from the dead. You can also resurrect things that are inactive or out of use. If you've ever seen someone bring a dead person back to life in a science fiction or fantasy movie, you saw them resurrect someone. Turning someone into a zombie or vampire is a type of resurrecting, and in the Bible Jesus resurrects Lazurus. Also, this word can apply to any kind of revival. A song can resurrect faded memories. A forgotten project can be resurrected if you start it up again. Resurrecting always involves bringing something back to life.
Vocabulary lists containing resurrect
The Roman and Byzantine Empires, Lessons 1–2
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 11–September 17, 2021
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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.
The “digital afterlife industry” is valued in the billions, providing customers around the globe with tools to resurrect their dead loved ones at scale.
From Slate • Apr. 23, 2026
The resolution could resurrect less-accessible computer labs to replace the current standard of a computer for every student.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 2026
Jos Buttler followed for 25 – he was scratchy again – and Tom Banton 17, only for Bethell to resurrect the chase in the company of Jacks.
From BBC • Mar. 5, 2026
Meanwhile, the All-India Muslim League had launched the Khilafat movement, at first to fund and preserve the caliphate, and then to resurrect it in exile.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026
Unfortunately, this theory would also retroactively outlaw choreograph, diagnose, resurrect, edit, sculpt, sleepwalk, and hundreds of other verbs that have become completely unexceptionable.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
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.
