Latin word root · Prefixes

re-: back, again

re- is a Latin root meaning “back, again”. Learn its variants and explore 18 connected words.

Meaning and variants

Meaning: back, again

Root forms: re-, red-

Word family and examples

• reduce

  to make smaller or less in amount, degree, or size

• reform

  to make changes in order to improve something

• refer

  to mention or allude to; to direct to a source for help

• reflect

  to throw back light or heat; to think deeply

• reverse

  to move backward; to turn the other way around

• relate

  to make or show a connection between; to tell a story

• resist

  to withstand the action or effect of; to oppose

• retain

  to continue to have; to keep possession of

• react

  to respond to something

• recipient

  a person who receives something

• respiratory

  relating to breathing

• restrict

  to put a limit on; to keep under control

• revive

  to restore to life or consciousness

• reside

  to have one's permanent home in a particular place

• revolve

  to move in a circle around a central point

• resonate

  to produce or be filled with a deep, full sound

• recede

  to go or move back or further away

• repulse

  to drive back an attack or attacker

Root connections help with vocabulary recall. They are not a complete etymological history, and a spelling match alone does not prove a relationship.

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