resurrect
Americanverb (used with object)
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resurrects,
present (3rd person singular)
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resurrected,
past participle, past
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resurrecting
present participle
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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)
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resurrects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
resurrected,
past participle, past
-
resurrecting
present participle
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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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resurrectsimple
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resurrectssimple
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have resurrectedperfect
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has resurrectedperfect
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am resurrectingprogressive
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are resurrectingprogressive
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is resurrectingprogressive
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have been resurrectingperfect progressive
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has been resurrectingperfect progressive
Past
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resurrectedsimple
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had resurrectedperfect
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was resurrectingprogressive
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were resurrectingprogressive
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had been resurrectingperfect progressive
Future
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.
See Examples For:
“We know for science to succeed we need predictability and stability, not month-by-month funding fights,” Wiener said Friday in announcing the deal to resurrect SB 895.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s immediate rejection of the idea brought Kushner back into the mix to see if he could resurrect a little of that old Kissinger magic.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
He used his popularity not to jump into Hollywood projects but to resurrect “Tires.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Others are preserving genetic material in case we ever work out how to resurrect species from the dead.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
"We're scientists. We must take the risks of our science and our will to achieve. Would you like to resurrect God to take responsibility?"
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
The film resurrects the story of sisters Sally and Gillian Owens, modern day witches who face a curse that sees any man they fall in love with doomed to an early death.
From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026
On Symmetry he even resurrects Shape Of You's analogy of two bodies pulling together like magnets.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2025
Sometimes what’s left behind are the dredges of history and time, which Mason resurrects onstage.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2025
It’s more accurate to say Eminem resurrects him than to argue that he’s been using him as a crutch for 25 years.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2024
The story of a young god typical of the Spring who suffers a premature death, and after a time resurrects from the grave is well known in the mythologies of other nations.
From Creed And Deed A Series of Discourses by Felix Adler
Barber and Sil caution that resurrected antimicrobial peptides are unlikely to become new medicines anytime soon.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026
What we have here might be an example of the Tinkerbell effect, named for the “Peter Pan” character who could be resurrected from death by audience participation, i.e. belief in fairies.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
However, sources say the transfer could be resurrected later in the summer depending how the window develops for United, although the club would not be prepared to sanction any move at the previously agreed terms.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
But these are all previously animated ideas resurrected pretty much as we’ve already seen them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
His eyes caught on Sarai for a long tremulous moment and she knew what he was seeing: Isagol the Terrible, resurrected from the dead.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
He continued: "We're definitely interested in whether by resurrecting or engineering some enhanced antimicrobial peptides, we could use these as therapeutics down the road."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026
The cost of Gary, Ind.’s blight elimination campaign, which includes demolishing part of the downtown, securing investment from local employers and resurrecting dormant neighborhoods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
The BBC's filling the gap on iPlayer by resurrecting classic sets from its archive - from Radiohead in 1997 to Olivia Rodrigo last year.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
Instead, Lodge, who goes by Cabot, picked up an HP-12C financial calculator and never looked back, perhaps with an eye to resurrecting the family’s business bona fides.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
Thus his idea did not seem worth resurrecting only to be quickly buried.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
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.
