ENGLISH
REFERENCE

restore

v. · n.
US //ɹɪˈstɔɹ// re·store
  1. 1 to repair or renovate (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to repair something old so that it looks and works like it did when it was new.

    to return an object or building to its former condition through careful repair or renovation.

    Example

    The museum spent years trying to restore the old painting to its original beauty.

    Example

    The historical society raised funds to restore the Victorian mansion, ensuring that every architectural detail matched the original 1885 blueprints.

    Usage

    Often used with 'to' to indicate the target state.
  2. 2 to re-establish a situation (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to bring back a law, a feeling, or a situation that existed before.

    to re-establish or reinstate a previous practice, law, or state of affairs.

    Example

    The police worked hard to restore order after the protest ended.

    Example

    The new administration promised to restore public confidence in the banking system by introducing stricter transparency requirements.
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  1. 3 to recover computer data (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Technical Computing

    to put information back onto a computer from a saved copy.

    to recover files or system settings from a backup or previous state.

    Example

    I had to restore my phone from a backup after it crashed.

    Example

    The IT department managed to restore the database to its state before the ransomware attack, minimizing the loss of customer records.
  2. 4 to return an item (v.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    to give something back to its rightful owner.

    to return something that was lost or taken to its original owner or place.

    Example

    The stolen jewels were eventually restored to the royal family.

    Example

    International law often requires that looted cultural artifacts be restored to their country of origin.

    Teacher's tip

    In everyday English, people usually say 'give back' or 'return' instead of 'restore' for physical objects.
  3. 5 a data recovery (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Computing

    the act of putting saved information back onto a computer.

    the process of recovering data or system configurations from a backup source.

    Example

    The system restore took about twenty minutes to complete.

    Example

    After the server failure, the administrator initiated a full restore of the primary partition to ensure service continuity.
Origin

From Middle English restoren, from Old French restorer, from Latin rēstaurāre. By surface analysis, re- + store.

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