regift

1 of 2

verb

re·​gift (ˌ)rē-ˈgift How to pronounce regift (audio)
regifted; regifting; regifts

intransitive verb

: to give someone a gift that was previously received from someone else

transitive verb

: to give (a previously received gift) to someone else
regifter noun

regift

2 of 2

noun

: something given as a gift that the giver has previously received as a gift from someone else
Make sure the regift recipient doesn't frequent the same social circles that the original gift-giver does.Chris Mautner

Examples of regift in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
And then easy to wrap again when the recipient decides to regift it. H. Alan Scott, Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2024 Also, don’t regift something someone made special for you. Michelle Singletary, Washington Post, 29 Nov. 2023 By early November, No Kid Hungry had used the generosity to regift $34.5 million to more than 1,200 schools, food banks and community organizations, with plans to distribute an additional $28 million by the end of the year, said Shore, who founded the nonprofit. Ronald D. White, Los Angeles Times, 26 Nov. 2020 To find a use or place for it, to regift or dispose of it responsibly, to show somewhat unfelt gratitude for it, to tamp down the guilt of costing someone money and being a helpless party to natural resource depletion. Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 1 Feb. 2023 Similarly, a series of studies conducted in 2012 showed that people overestimate the extent to which givers are offended by a recipient’s decision to regift. Annie Midori Atherton, The Atlantic, 20 Dec. 2022 Still, some celebs regift the bags or turn them down. Robert W. Wood, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2022 Except, of course, someone who gets Covid-19 can regift it to others. Adam Rogers, Wired, 23 Apr. 2021 Holguin Pineda was intrigued by the Facebook group, one of a network of thousands across the world where people regift items to neighbors instead of throwing them away. Washington Post, 22 Apr. 2021
Noun
Ask Amy: My son’s girlfriend’s snobby parents sent us a regift Miss Manners: Do guests always have to reciprocate invitations? Washington Post, 15 Jan. 2024 More:Closet shoppers regift reveals uncomfortable dynamic More:A friend with many secrets demands silence And – not to put too fine a point on it, but casinos are also dens of iniquity. Amy Dickinson, Detroit Free Press, 23 July 2023 Recommend a registry or regift Boxer also recommends using a gift registry, like Giftster, CheckedTwice or Amazon’s Wish List, to provide specific suggestions. Kim Fitzsimons, NBC News, 8 Dec. 2019 Gerwig’s is a regift of sorts, considering that this will technically be the eighth version of Alcott’s 1868 novel to appear on the big screen. Sonia Rao, Washington Post, 13 Aug. 2019 No one wants to give a present that ends up relegated to the regift pile. The Cut, 16 Dec. 2017

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

1995, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun

1998, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of regift was in 1995

Dictionary Entries Near regift

Cite this Entry

“Regift.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/regift. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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