Reinvoke

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To call back into action or use something that had previously been applied or established
2. To restore or apply again a rule, right, or procedure that was earlier withdrawn or ended
3. To reactivate a function, law, or agreement that had ceased to be effective

Etymology: "Reinvoke" is simply the prefix "re-", meaning "again" or "back," attached to "invoke," which comes from Latin "invocare," meaning "to call upon" (from "in-" plus "vocare," "to call"). Put together, the verb means to call something back into use, or to summon again something that had been set aside or lost. The prefix does most of the work here. English has long attached "re-" to verbs freely, so "reinvoke" follows the same pattern as "reuse" or "restore," and its meaning can be read directly from its parts. The older sense of "invoke," to call on a deity or higher power for help, has been broadened over time so that people now also invoke laws, rights, or precedents, and "reinvoke" carries that wider sense.

Synonyms: restore, reestablish