Rerigging

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. The act of setting up or assembling equipment or rigging again; reinstalling or adjusting the rigging on a ship, stage, or machinery; repositioning or modifying equipment to prepare for use anew
2. The process of reconfiguring or reinforcing support structures or lines; updating or changing the rigging arrangements in nautical, theatrical, or mechanical contexts; restoring or adapting equipment setups for subsequent operation
3. Performing the task of dismantling and then reestablishing rigging systems; altering or improving rigging setups on vessels, stages, or mechanical rigs; renewing or resetting structural components to suit new requirements

Etymology: "Rerigging" is the present participle and gerund of "rerig," a verb formed in English by attaching the prefix "re-", meaning again or anew, to "rig." The base "rig" is the older and more central word: in its sense of equipping a ship with masts, sails and ropes, it gave English its rigging, the whole system of lines and spars that holds sails in place. Because that sense was so firmly tied to seafaring, "rig" later spread to other contexts, such as fitting out a stage or assembling a piece of equipment, and "rerig" follows the same pattern. The meaning of the compound is therefore simple and literal. To rerig is to strip an existing set of lines and fittings and then assemble them again in a new arrangement, whether to improve a vessel's performance, adapt a theatre's flying system to a new production, or reset a mechanical frame for a different load. The prefix does the work here; nothing in the word has shifted from its original sense beyond the ordinary extension of "rig" from ships to other structures.

Synonyms: rearranging, refitting, retuning