rejoin
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
to go back to a person or a group of people after you have been away from them.
to return to the company of a person or group after a period of separation.
Simple“After making a quick phone call, he went back inside to rejoin his friends at the table.”
In context“The diplomat took a brief leave of absence to attend to family matters before traveling to Brussels to rejoin the negotiating team.”
UsageThis is a transitive verb that takes a direct object.
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
to join two or more things together again after they were separated.
to unite or connect physical parts or entities again after a period of disjunction.
Simple“The plumber had to rejoin the two pipes after fixing the leak.”
In context“The surgeon worked meticulously to rejoin the severed nerves, hoping to restore full sensation to the patient's hand.”
- 03 C2 Proficiency
to say something in answer to what someone else has just said, often quickly or sharply.
to state something in reply, particularly as a quick or witty response to a statement.
Simple“"I certainly will not," she rejoined when he asked her to lie for him.”
In context“He was known for his sharp wit, often rejoining with a clever remark that left his opponents speechless during the debate.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
to provide a formal answer in a court case, usually from the person being sued.
to answer as a defendant to a plaintiff's replication in a legal proceeding.
Simple“The defendant's lawyer prepared to rejoin to the new evidence presented by the other side.”
In context“Under the rules of civil procedure, the defendant was permitted to rejoin only after the plaintiff had filed a formal replication to the initial plea.”
UsageUsed as an intransitive verb in this specific legal context.
“I am confident that if we incentivised UK students to try social care before university, many would consider rejoining once they had graduated.”
“However, he rejoined when his old friend Jeremy Corbyn became leader in 2015.”
From Middle English rejoynen, partly from Middle French rejoin- (stem of rejoindre, from re- (“again”) + joindre (“to join”)) and partly from re- + joynen. By surface analysis, re- + join. Doublet of rejoinder.
From Middle English rejoynen, from Middle French rejoin- (stem of rejoindre, from re- (“again”) + joindre (“to join”)). By surface analysis, re- + join. Doublet of rejoinder.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.