refire

verb

re·​fire (ˌ)rē-ˈfī(-ə)r How to pronounce refire (audio)
refired; refiring
1
transitive : to fire (something or someone) again: such as
a
: to apply heat to (something, such as pottery) again as part of a manufacturing process
… emulated the reflectivity of metalwork by applying metal oxides to white-glazed vessels that were then refired.Roberta Smith
b
: to dismiss (someone) from a position again
unfortunately had to refire him after only one month
c
: to discharge (something, such as a firearm) again
refired the gun after reloading
2
transitive + intransitive : to resume or cause (something) to resume operation : restart
Petty's engine stalled and wouldn't refire, and his crew pushed him across, drawing a one-lap penalty …John Green
… he pledged to help refire the country's economic engineNJ.com

Examples of refire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
But after Will Power came to a stop in pitlane, his car failed to refire. Nathan Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 17 June 2021 There is a lot of passion associated with Maserati, and the new QP may refire those passions. K.c. Colwell, Car and Driver, 4 Apr. 2023 But the one song Pippa needs to refire Jane’s career remains elusive, and now Jonesy, the Mark Ronson-meets-Dr. Luke Svengali who wrote Jane’s hit, reemerges with the promise of a comeback at a big arena gig of the kind that the Bangles themselves might have played in 1986. Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2023 As the Mouse House moves forward without its visionary leader, Chapek must refire the creative engines to grow Disney+. Ryan Faughnder, Los Angeles Times, 4 Jan. 2022 Following the command to refire engines, Power's No. 12 Chevy would not start despite thorough efforts from his crew. Nathan Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 14 June 2021 By all means, mash fiction into sludge and refire it into something new. Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2022 Both contenders lost significant time, as their teams tried to refire their cars and then make an extra stop to fully refuel. Nathan Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 30 May 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1656, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of refire was in 1656

Dictionary Entries Near refire

Cite this Entry

“Refire.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/refire. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!