Rehouse

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To provide a new dwelling for someone or something that requires relocation or a change of residence
2. To assign or move to a different house or living space, typically for the purpose of improvement
3. To provide a new home or place of living for individuals or entities that need to be relocated

Etymology: "Rehouse" is about as transparent as English verbs get: it is the prefix "re-", meaning again or anew, attached to "house". The "re-" comes from Latin, where it signalled repetition, and it reached English through Old French and Middle English, the same route that gave us words like "redo" and "review". The base word is much older, descending from Old English "hūs", a native Germanic word that has meant a dwelling place since the earliest records of the language. Put together, "rehouse" means to provide someone with a new dwelling, usually after the old one has been lost, condemned or cleared. Its everyday use today is mostly in the context of housing authorities moving families out of demolished or unsafe buildings, so the verb carries a quiet sense of displacement behind its plain meaning.

Synonyms: relocate, resettle, move, transfer, rehabilitate

Antonyms: evict, displace, expel