reinforce
Americanverb (used with object)
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reinforces,
present (3rd person singular)
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reinforced,
past participle, past
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reinforcing
present participle
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to strengthen with some added piece, support, or material.
to reinforce a wall.
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to strengthen (a military force) with additional personnel, ships, or aircraft.
to reinforce a garrison.
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to strengthen; make more forcible or effective.
to reinforce efforts.
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to augment; increase.
to reinforce a supply.
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Psychology. to strengthen the probability of (a response to a given stimulus) by giving or withholding a reward.
noun
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something that reinforces.
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a metal band on the rear part of the bore of a gun, where the explosion occurs.
verb
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to give added strength or support to
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to give added emphasis to; stress, support, or increase
his rudeness reinforced my determination
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to give added support to (a military force) by providing more men, supplies, etc
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psychol to reward an action or response of (a human or animal) so that it becomes more likely to occur again
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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reinforcesimple
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reinforcessimple
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have reinforcedperfect
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has reinforcedperfect
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am reinforcingprogressive
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are reinforcingprogressive
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is reinforcingprogressive
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have been reinforcingperfect progressive
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has been reinforcingperfect progressive
Past
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reinforcedsimple
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had reinforcedperfect
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was reinforcingprogressive
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were reinforcingprogressive
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had been reinforcingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reinforce
First recorded in 1590–1600; re- + inforce, alteration of enforce
Explanation
To reinforce means to make stronger. You can reinforce your roof by putting some extra supports under it. Besides a physical structure, there are many things you can reinforce. If you want to reinforce a message, you can say it louder, rephrase and repeat it or give examples of what you expect. You use dog biscuits to reinforce certain behaviors in your dog. Bad experiences will reinforce your fears, good ones your hopes. And when military leaders reinforce their troops, they send additional soldiers to the front.
Vocabulary lists containing reinforce
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 2
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The Language of Standardized Tests, List 2
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The ACT: The Language of the Test, List 2
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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:
“Recent developments only reinforce the view that we’re still some way from a restart in talks. In the meantime, the market is likely to continue to price in a sizable risk premium.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Living in that type of environment could then reinforce or further shape the same personality trait.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 8, 2026
They had to reinforce the floor of their Chicago apartment to support the pair’s weight.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
Dr Paul Moore says the new hub will reinforce the message that "your GP is there for you"
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
Ask them to help move risers or put instruments away so you can reinforce good behavior.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
Harbor resonance, in which the shape of a basin reinforces the water's oscillations, helped explain why neighboring ports experienced different effects.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
ING analysts Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey said the latest escalation reinforces the view that negotiations remain some way off.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Cornella are in the fifth tier of Spanish football and in April said Messi's ownership "reinforces his close ties to Barcelona and his commitment to the development of sport and local talent in Catalonia".
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Or, more realistically, a positive share-price reaction to Nvidia earnings reinforces investors’ faith in the robustness of the artificial-intelligence trade.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
The fact that the source of this expression predates Newton and was picked up by him for his own purposes only reinforces Faulkner’s compelling argument.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
“That sort of reinforced his fear that he had to be twice as good to get half the chance,” said Ward, the co-author of Pride’s biography.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
The findings also reinforced the important role that a person's environment plays in shaping personality.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 8, 2026
France Football's review ultimately reinforced the World Cup's influence on the Ballon d'Or.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
Bassam al-Assaf has installed a long barbed-wire fence around the compound and reinforced the school gates, to try and reassure parents.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
They were reinforced with sandbags, with sheets of corrugated iron, with wooden frames supporting the raised earthen parapets that protected the soldiers from enemy fire.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
Inditex, which operates in 215 markets worldwide, said its business model, "characterised by flexibility, responsiveness and within-season sourcing, permits us to react to fashion trends, reinforcing our unique market position" in a fragmented sector.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Western end users happily took the cheaper deal from China, reinforcing the concentration that became their own vulnerability.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
At the same time, global yields are rising and reinforcing the move.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
The discoveries are also reinforcing the importance of the Lake Turkana region as one of the world's richest areas for studying human evolution.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 30, 2026
He didn't move into the turreted house on the hill, but took up lodging in the Club House, reinforcing his status as a temporary fixture.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
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.
