Reheated

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Subjected to heating again after having cooled down once
2. Warmed anew following a prior cooling or standing period
3. Brought back to a hot temperature after initially being cooked and then cooled

Etymology: "Reheated" is the past tense and past participle of "reheat," which means to heat something again after it has already been heated or cooled. The word is a plain compound: the prefix "re-" (meaning "again" or "back") attached to "heat." The prefix itself has a long lineage. It comes from Latin "re-," which English inherited through Old French "re-," and it reached Middle English in that form. "Heat" is native English, descended from Old English "hǣtu," so the word combines a Latin-derived prefix with a Germanic root. That mix is typical of many everyday English verbs that pair a borrowed prefix with an older native base. Because the construction is transparent, the word needs little explanation: anyone who knows "heat" and "re-" can work out its meaning at once, which is why "reheat" and its forms have been used freely for centuries without any change in sense.

Synonyms: warmed, reheated