1149
recap
USAGE 1 Some people think a sentence such as The
reason for my absence was because I was ill is bad
English. It is better to say The reason for my absence
was that I was ill. 2 Compare cause and reason. A
cause is something which produces a result: The cause
of the accident was the fact that he was driving too fast.
A reason is something which explains or excuses an
action: The reason he was driving so fast was that he
was late for an important meeting. → see also EXCUSE
(USAGE)
reason² v 1 [I] to use one's REASON: the ability to rea-
son 2 [T+that; ] to form an opinion based on REASON: We
reasoned that the terrorists would not negotiate unless we
made some concessions. 3 [T+obj+into/out of] to persuade
(someone) to do/not to do: Try to reason him out of that
idea/into going away quietly. 4 Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die quote a phrase from the poem The
Charge of the Light Brigade by Tennyson, used now to say that
someone should not ask questions but should just do as
they are told → see also CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE
—er n: a clever reasoner
reason with sbdy. phr v [T] to talk or argue with (someone)
in order to persuade them to be more sensible: There's no
point in trying to reason with him - he'll never change his
mind.
rea-son-a-ble /'ri:zənəbəl/ adj 1 (of a person or their
behaviour) showing fairness and good sense: a reasonable
man | a reasonable request | Be reasonable - you can't expect
her to do all the work on her own. | a perfectly reasonable
thing to do | It's reasonable to expect that prices will come
down soon. → opposite UNREASONABLE; see LOGICAL
(USAGE) 2 a) not too much, too many, or too great: We live
a reasonable distance away from the station. b) (of a price)
fair; not expensive: Bananas are quite reasonable this
week. 3 not bad; quite good: 'What's the food in the canteen
like?' 'It's quite reasonable.' —ness n [U]
rea-son-a-bly /'ri:zənəbli/ adv 1 sensibly: to behave reason-
ably 2 quite; fairly: The car is in reasonably good condition. |
They live reasonably close. | a reasonably-priced car
rea-soned /'ri:zənd/ adj [A] apprec (of a statement, argument
etc) clearly thought out; based on reason: a (well-)reasoned
statement/explanation
rea-son-ing /'ri:zənɪŋ/ n [U] the use of one's REASON:
According to their reasoning lower oil prices will stimulate
business activity in the poorer countries.
re-as-sure /,ri:ə'ʃʊə/ v [T(about)] to comfort and make free
from fear or worry; bring back confidence to: I was worried
that my work wasn't good enough, but the teacher reassured
me (about it). | She was reassured by our offer of support. |
[+that] The chairman tried to reassure the shareholders that
the company's bad results would not be repeated. → see
INSURE (USAGE) —assurance n [C;U] She won't believe it in
spite of all our reassurance(s). —suringly adv: 'You'll be all
right,' he said reassuringly.
re-bar-ba-tive /rɪ'bɑ:bətɪvl-ɑ:r-/ adj fml very unattractive or
offensive; REPELLENT
re-bate /'ri:beit/ n an official return of part of a payment:
You can claim a rebate on your tax because you didn't work for
a full year. → compare DISCOUNT
reb-el¹ /'rebəl/ n 1 a person who rebels: Anti-government
rebels have seized the radio station. | Tom's always been a bit
of a rebel; he hates conforming. | rebel tribesmen | a rebel
stronghold 2 AmE a supporter of the Confederacy in the
American Civil War
re-bel² /rɪ'bel/ v -ll- [(against)] to oppose or fight against
someone in a position of control: The people have rebelled
against their foreign rulers. | children who rebel against
authority/against their parents
re-bel-lion /rɪ'beljən/ n [C;U(against)] (an act of) rebelling:
The slaves rose in rebellion against their masters. | an armed
rebellion | The rebellion was ruthlessly put down. (=stopped) |
The prime minister's determination to pursue this policy led to
a rebellion among his own ministers. → compare REVOLUTION
re-bel-lious /rɪ'beljəs/ adj disobedient and hard to control;
tending to rebel: rebellious teenagers/behaviour —ty adv
—ness n [U]
,Rebel With,out a 'Cause (1955) a US film in which James
DEAN appeared as a TEENAGER from a respectable MIDDLE
CLASS family who gets into trouble with the police. As a
result of this performance Dean became the most typical
example of a young REBEL (=someone who refuses to behave
in the way that society expects).
re-bind /,ri:'baɪnd/ v -bound /'baʊnd/ [T] to put a new
BINDING (=cover) onto (a book)
re-birth /,ri:'bɜ:θ-ɜ:rθ/ n [S] fml a renewal of life or exist-
ence: The firm had gone bankrupt, but the following year saw
its rebirth under a new name.
re-boot /,ri:'bu:t/ v [I;T] to start up (a computer), usually
from a state of not working, or not working properly: That
problem should go away as soon as you reboot. | We normally
reboot our systems only once every 24 hours. —reboot
/'ri:bu:t/ n
re-born /,ri:'bɔ:nɪl-ɔ:rn/ adj [F] fml or lit (as if) born again: Our
hopes of success were reborn.
re-bound¹ /rɪ'baʊnd/ v [I] 1 to fly back after hitting some-
thing: The ball rebounded from the wall and I caught
it. 2 (especially of prices, amounts etc) to move quickly
back to a former level after falling: Share prices rebounded
today after last week's falls.
rebound on/upon sbdy. phr v [T no pass.] (of a harmful
action) to have a bad effect on (the person who did it): His
lies rebounded on him in the end because no one trusted him
any more.
re-bound² /'ri:baʊnd/ n 1 on the rebound a) confused
and upset because a romantic relationship has just ended,
especially when this makes you start a new relationship
without thinking carefully about it b) a ball that is on the
rebound is moving back into the air after hitting something:
Johnny caught the ball on the rebound. 2 in BASKETBALL an
act of catching a ball that has rebounded against the basket
or the BOARDS
re-buff /rɪ'bʌf/ n fml an unkind or unfriendly answer to a
suggestion, request, or offer of help or friendship; SNUB: Our
request for support met with an unexpected rebuff. —rebuff v
[T] She rebuffed all my offers of friendship.
re-build /,ri:'bɪld/ v -built /'bɪlt/ [T] to build again or build
new parts to: The house was rebuilt after the fire. | (fig.) a
political party that wants to rebuild our manufacturing
industry | (fig.) to rebuild one's confidence after a setback
re-buke /rɪ'bju:k/ v [T(for)] fml to speak to (someone) severely,
especially officially: The judge rebuked the police for their
treatment of the prisoner. —rebuke n: to administer a rebuke
re-bus /'ri:bəs/ n a word game or PUZZLE in which words
have to be guessed from pictures or letters that suggest the
sounds that make them: 'R U 18' is a rebus for 'Are you 18?'
re-but /rɪ'bʌt/ v -tt- [T] fml to prove the falseness of (a
statement or charge); REFUTE —tal n [C;U]
re-cal-ci-trant /rɪ'kælsɪtrənt/ adj fml refusing to obey or be
controlled, even after being punished: recalcitrant children/
behaviour —trance n [U]
re-call¹ /rɪ'kɔ:l/ v [T] 1 [not in progressive forms] rather fml a) to
bring back to the mind; remember: I can't recall the exact
details of the report. | [+v-ing/that] I don't recall ever meeting
her/that I ever met her. | [+wh-] Do you recall why she left? b)
to make one remember (someone or something) by being
similar: a style of film-making that recalls Alfred Hitch-
cock 2 [(from, to)] to send for or take back: The government
recalled its ambassador after the diplomatic row. | The makers
have recalled a lot of cars that were unsafe. —able adj
re-call² /rɪ'k:lɪrɪ'kɔ:l, 'ri:kɔ:l/ n 1 [S;U (from, to)] (a) call to
return: the recall of our ambassador 2 [U] the power to
remember something learned or experienced: John has total
recall and never forgets anything. 3 beyond/past recall
impossible to be changed
re-cant /rɪ'kænt/ v [I;T] fml to say publicly that one no longer
holds (a former political or religious belief): He recanted (his
faith) and became a Muslim/Christian. | She recanted her
testimony that she had never met the accused man. —ation
/,rɪkæn'teɪʃən/ n [C;U]
re-cap¹ /'ri:kæp/ v -pp- [I;T] infml to recapitulate: He recapped
on what the teacher had said. —recap n