Regrading

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The act of reviewing and adjusting previously assigned categories or assessments for clarity or accuracy
2. The process of re-evaluating and modifying past classifications or judgments to better reflect current understanding
3. The process of going over previous ratings or classifications to make improvements or corrections

Etymology: "Regrading" is simply the re- prefix attached to "grade," with the same prefix-plus-base construction that English uses for countless other verbs. The prefix re- descends from Latin "re-," meaning "again" or "back," and arrived in English through Old French and Middle English, while "grade" entered English as a borrowing from French, itself ultimately rooted in the Latin "gradus," meaning "step." Put together, "regrade" means to step something back through the ranks and set it on a new step. The sense of the word follows that original idea of stepping. A grade is a rung on a scale, so to regrade is to move something to a different rung, usually after reconsidering how it was first placed. That is why the word fits so neatly into the sphere of reviewing assessments: an examiner who regrades an exam is climbing back up or down the same ladder, looking again at where each answer belongs.

Synonyms: reassessment, re-evaluation