rewrite

English

Etymology

From re- +‎ write.

Pronunciation

• (noun)
  • (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɹiː.ɹaɪt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

  • (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɹi.ɹaɪt/
  • Rhymes: -iːɹaɪt
• (verb)
  • (UK) IPA^(key): /ɹiːˈɹaɪt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

  • (US) IPA^(key): /ɹiˈɹaɪt/
  • Rhymes: -aɪt

Noun

rewrite (plural rewrites)

1. The act of writing again or anew.

   The film script underwent a rewrite for the European market.

   • 1991 August 24, Maridee BonaDea, “Pomo Afro Homos On The Road”, in Gay Community News, volume 19, number 6, page 7:

     After a month of writing and another month for rehearsals and re-writes, the three planned a one-night-only performance billed as a work in progress at Josie's Cabaret and Juice Joint in San Francisco.

2. Something that has been written again.
3. (mathematics, computing) The replacement of subterms of a formula with other terms, according to certain rules, by way of transformation.

Derived terms

• page-one rewrite
• rewriteman

 

Translations

something that has been written again

• Bulgarian: преработка (bg) f (prerabotka)
• Esperanto: reverko
• Norwegian: omskrivning m or f
• Scottish Gaelic: ath-sgrìobhadh m

Verb

rewrite (third-person singular simple present rewrites, present participle rewriting, simple past rewrote, past participle rewritten)

1. (transitive) To write again, differently; to modify; to revise.

   The editor asked me to rewrite my article for a non-technical audience.

   • 2021 January 13, Paul Clifton, “Network News: Timetable cuts as demand falls and staff are protected”, in Rail, page 7:

     If we are going to rewrite all of those diagrams and change the duties of all of those staff, it will take a few weeks.

   • 2023 May 8, Jonathan Head, “Thailand election: The young radicals shaking up politics”, in BBC News (World)‎^[1]:

     The conservative establishment will have to ask themselves, what else they can do? […] And even though they rewrite the electoral rules in their favour, their parties still lose the election.

2. (transitive) To write again (without changes).
3. (mathematics, computing) To replace subterms of a formula with other terms, according to certain rules, by way of transformation.

Usage notes

• The verb "restate" has analogous senses "to state again" and "to rephrase, to state again differently".

Derived terms

• rewritable
• rewrite history

 

Translations

write again, differently

• Belarusian: перапі́сваць (pjerapísvacʹ), перапіса́ць pf (pjerapisácʹ)
• Bulgarian: преработвам (bg) (prerabotvam)
• Catalan: reescriure (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 重寫／重写 (zh) (chóngxiě)

• Czech: přepsat (cs) pf
• Finnish: kirjoittaa uudestaan
• French: réécrire (fr), récrire (fr)
• Galician: reescribir
• German: umschreiben (de)
• Italian: riscrivere
• Japanese: 書き直す (かきなおす, kakinaosu)
• Kazakh: көшіру (köşıru)
• Latin: rescrībō
• Norwegian: omskrive
• Portuguese: reescrever (pt), reformular
• Russian: перепи́сывать (ru) impf (perepísyvatʹ), переписа́ть (ru) pf (perepisátʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: ath-sgrìobh
• Slovak: prepísať pf
• Spanish: reescribir (es)

write again, without changing

• Belarusian: перапі́сваць impf (pjerapísvacʹ), перапіса́ць pf (pjerapisácʹ)
• Bulgarian: преписвам (bg) (prepisvam)
• Catalan: reescriure (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 抄寫／抄写 (zh) (chāoxiě)

• Finnish: kirjoittaa uudestaan
• Galician: reescribir
• German: neu schreiben
• Italian: riscrivere
• Kazakh: көшіру (köşıru)
• Norwegian: rekonstruere
• Polish: przepisywać (pl) impf, przepisać (pl) pf
• Portuguese: reescrever (pt)
• Russian: перепи́сывать (ru) impf (perepísyvatʹ), переписа́ть (ru) pf (perepisátʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: ath-sgrìobh
• Spanish: reescribir (es)
• Ukrainian: перепи́сувати impf (perepýsuvaty), переписа́ти pf (perepysáty)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked‌: "to write again"

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} herschrijven (nl)
• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} reskribi
• Hungarian: ^{(please verify)} átír (hu), ^{(please verify)} átfogalmaz (hu)
• Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} menulis ulang
• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} rescrie (ro)