Etymologically
Log in

recover

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 05:05. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /rɪˈkʌv.ə/, US /rɪˈkʌv.ɚ/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English rekeveren, recoveren, borrowed from Anglo-Norman recoverer, borrowed from Old French recovrer (“to come back; to regain health; to get again”) (modern French recouvrer),[2][3][4] from Latin recuperāre (“to get again, recover”),[2][3][5] which is akin to recipere (“to take back, receive”).[5] It is a doublet of recuperate, borrowed directly from the Latin.[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Probably before 1300, in Arthour and Merlin, both to get back something lost and to regain strength or health;[2] Etymonline dates to regain consciousness or health to about 1300.[4] Word Origins notes that both senses were present in English from the start.[6]

Semantic evolution

NODE says the word originally referred to health.[7] To get anything back or regain control of it after losing it is from the mid-14th century,[4] 1377 in the OED,[8] and to regain territory by conquest from about 1375.[8] In law, to obtain by judgment or legal proceedings is from the late 14th century.[4] To restore another person to health is from about 1600, and to rescue from danger from the 1610s.[4] To recover arms (1680s) is to bring a gun from the aiming position to ready.[4] Obtaining usable substances from ore or waste, and compensating for a loss, as to recover costs, are other modern senses.[9][10] Recovery is possibly about 1303, in Mannyng,[2] and recoverable before 1471.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 1300 – to regain health; to get back.[2][4]
  • c. 1303 – recovery.[2]
  • 1377 – to get back into one's possession.[8]
  • late 14th century – to obtain by legal process.[4]
  • c. 1600 – to restore another to health.[4]
  • 1680s – to recover arms.[4]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To return to a normal state of health, mind or strength.
  2. To get back something lost or taken; to regain.
  3. To make up for or recoup a loss.
  4. To extract usable materials from ore or waste.
  5. (law) To obtain by a judgment in court, as damages.

Word family

  • recoverable
  • recoverer
  • recoverability
  • unrecovered

Usage notes

Re-cover, to cover again, is a separate formation from re- and cover, pronounced UK /ˌriːˈkʌv.ə/.[1][10]

References

  1. ^ a b Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  9. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  10. ^ a b Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins