Meaning & use
reclaim
Last updated
Meanings
verbtransitive
To get back something that was lost, taken away, or given up.
Grammar: Takes an object: reclaim your money. Often used with back: reclaim your money back.
Patterns
- reclaim something
- reclaim something from someone
- reclaim something back
After the flight was canceled, she reclaimed her luggage from the lost and found.
The company is trying to reclaim the money it paid by mistake.
He reclaimed his seat when the meeting restarted.
verbtransitive
To make land fit for use, especially by draining water or improving poor soil.
Grammar: Takes an object: reclaim land. Often used in passive: the land was reclaimed from the sea.
Patterns
- reclaim land
- reclaim something from something
The Dutch reclaimed large areas of land from the sea.
They plan to reclaim the old industrial site for a park.
The desert was reclaimed through irrigation.
verbtransitivetechnical
To obtain useful materials from waste products.
Grammar: Takes an object: reclaim plastic. Often followed by from: reclaim plastic from bottles.
Patterns
- reclaim something from something
The factory reclaims silver from old electronics.
We can reclaim glass from bottles and jars.
New technology helps reclaim water from industrial waste.
verbtransitivefigurative
To bring back a quality or condition that had been lost.
Grammar: Takes an object: reclaim your confidence. Used about abstract things like reputation, dignity, or time.
Patterns
- reclaim something
After the scandal, he worked hard to reclaim his reputation.
She reclaimed her independence after the divorce.
The team hopes to reclaim the championship title this year.
Word forms
| third person singular | reclaims |
|---|---|
| past tense | reclaimed |
| past participle | reclaimed |
| -ing form | reclaiming |
Common combinations
- reclaim land
- The government wants to reclaim land for farming.
- reclaim your money
- You can reclaim your money if the product is faulty.
- reclaim your baggage
- After the delay, passengers reclaimed their baggage.
- reclaim your identity
- The community is trying to reclaim its identity after years of change.
- reclaim from
- They reclaim valuable metals from old computers.
Synonyms and how they differ
- recover
- To get something back after losing it, often used for health or possessions; reclaim is more formal and often suggests a legal or official right.
- retrieve
- To get something back, especially from a place; retrieve is more about fetching, while reclaim emphasizes restoring ownership.
- regain
- To get back a quality or ability; regain is often used for abstract things like consciousness or strength, while reclaim can also mean making land usable.
Opposites
Word family
- reclamation noun
- The process of reclaiming land or waste materials.
- reclaimable adjective
- Able to be reclaimed.
Commonly confused: reclaim or re-claim?
reclaim vs re-claim
Sometimes written with a hyphen to mean 'claim again', but the standard spelling is 'reclaim'.
Practice
After the storm damaged the coast, the city decided to ______ the beach by adding sand.
Choose one answer.
Reclaim is used for making land usable again, especially from water or erosion. Recover is more about getting something back after losing it, retrieve means to fetch something, and regain is for abstract qualities like strength.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “reclaim”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.