reuse
Americanverb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Explanation
To reuse something is to make use of it more than once, or for a subsequent time. Asking for a plastic bag at the grocery store might seem wasteful, but you can reuse that bag many times. Instead of throwing something away after using it once, ask yourself if there's any way you can reuse it. You can reuse a paper towel roll by putting it in your hamster's cage so he can crawl through and chew on it. You can reuse containers like glass jars and plastic tubs by storing leftovers in them. You can even reuse kitchen scraps by composting them and using the compost in your garden.
Vocabulary lists containing reuse
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:
Tech companies could risk breaching European Union copyright laws when their artificial-intelligence chatbots reuse news articles to generate answers, a top adviser to the bloc’s highest court said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026
Dawn Dale, the trust's community development manager, said the Echo project was named to reflect its aim of giving items a second life through reuse.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026
The lawsuit claims that such unauthorized reuse “is destroying the value of these works in a matter of a few years with only profit as its motive.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026
At division headquarters in Ingolstadt, Germany, management has embraced the “reduce, reuse and recycle” mantra.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026
The main thing we’ll need is paint, since we can reuse the other stuff from the original Hideout.
From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks
RadixArk’s inference engine reuses KV cache by organizing conversation snippets into a filing system called a Radix tree.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026
She also reuses the old cards to new ones and has let go of old cassettes and CDs.
From BBC ● Feb. 3, 2026
The human brain repeatedly reuses the same cognitive "blocks" across many different situations, combining and recombining them to form new patterns of behavior.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 28, 2025
She said she reuses the Cheetos in her artwork.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2024
Like well-run factories, cells are thrifty; part of the cellular machinery chops up and reuses anything that is floating around inside, including bits of the cell and foreign invaders such as viruses.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
The adviser said cases should focus on whether a chatbot accessed articles unlawfully or reused a publication’s specific form of expression.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026
The results were “very close to the originals: same structure, same hooks reused with light rewording, and full sets of verses/choruses/bridges.”
From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026
Once they burned out, these boosters landed in the ocean, where they were recovered, refurbished and reused — including, now, in the museum.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
They can be revitalised and reused more quickly than natural surfaces, which could relieve some of the pressure caused by the loss of Pitch Nine.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Olanna placed her cup against her cheek, to warm it, to delay the first sip of weak tea made from a reused tea bag.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The company is reusing some subsystems from that flight, a strategy intended to speed development and reduce risk while supporting NASA's goal of creating commercial lunar landers that can operate repeatedly and at larger scales.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
The legislation also requires ultra-fast fashion companies to display messages on their websites promoting more moderate consumption, including reusing and repairing clothing.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
As well as reusing window blinds and kitchen units, Ali attempted to have the laminate flooring he had installed in his old office removed and reused in his new one.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
But Iran has largely abandoned the idea of firing missiles from underground launch locations, according to Eveleth, owing to the technical difficulties of reusing silos.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026
The looting dates back millennia, with the Inka having ravaged the centers of their predecessors, sometimes reusing art and stonework.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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