RECLAIM Synonyms: 48 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the verb 'reclaim' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of reclaim are deliver , ransom , redeem , rescue , and save . While all these words mean "to set free from confinement or danger," reclaim suggests a bringing back to a former state or condition of someone or something abandoned or debased. // reclaimed long-abandoned farms

Q: Where would 'deliver' be a reasonable alternative to 'reclaim'?

While the synonyms deliver and reclaim are close in meaning, deliver implies release usually of a person from confinement, temptation, slavery, or suffering. // delivered his people from bondage

Q: When could 'ransom' be used to replace 'reclaim'?

The words ransom and reclaim can be used in similar contexts, but ransom specifically applies to buying out of captivity. // tried to ransom the kidnap victim

Q: When is it sensible to use 'redeem' instead of 'reclaim'?

The meanings of redeem and reclaim largely overlap; however, redeem implies releasing from bondage or penalties by giving what is demanded or necessary. // job training designed to redeem school dropouts from chronic unemployment

Q: In what contexts can 'rescue' take the place of 'reclaim'?

Although the words rescue and reclaim have much in common, rescue implies freeing from imminent danger by prompt or vigorous action. // rescued the crew of a sinking ship

Q: When can 'save' be used instead of 'reclaim'?

While in some cases nearly identical to reclaim , save may replace any of the foregoing terms; it may further imply a preserving or maintaining for usefulness or continued existence. // an operation that saved my life

reclaim

verb

ri-ˈklām

Definition of reclaim

as in to regain

to get again in one's possession she reclaimed the championship title after losing it last year

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to rehabilitate

to make better in behavior or character a program to reclaim juvenile offenders by requiring them to do community service

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to recycle

to obtain (a raw material) by separating it from a by-product or waste product after reclaiming the glycerin from used vegetable oil, you can use the oil to create a fuel that burns cleaner than regular gasoline

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb reclaim contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of reclaim are deliver, ransom, redeem, rescue, and save. While all these words mean "to set free from confinement or danger," reclaim suggests a bringing back to a former state or condition of someone or something abandoned or debased.

reclaimed long-abandoned farms

Where would deliver be a reasonable alternative to reclaim?

While the synonyms deliver and reclaim are close in meaning, deliver implies release usually of a person from confinement, temptation, slavery, or suffering.

delivered his people from bondage

When could ransom be used to replace reclaim?

The words ransom and reclaim can be used in similar contexts, but ransom specifically applies to buying out of captivity.

tried to ransom the kidnap victim

When is it sensible to use redeem instead of reclaim?

The meanings of redeem and reclaim largely overlap; however, redeem implies releasing from bondage or penalties by giving what is demanded or necessary.

job training designed to redeem school dropouts from chronic unemployment

In what contexts can rescue take the place of reclaim?

Although the words rescue and reclaim have much in common, rescue implies freeing from imminent danger by prompt or vigorous action.

rescued the crew of a sinking ship

When can save be used instead of reclaim?

While in some cases nearly identical to reclaim, save may replace any of the foregoing terms; it may further imply a preserving or maintaining for usefulness or continued existence.

an operation that saved my life

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of reclaim The relative chart versus the SPX has improved as well, with NTR rebounding from trendline support and reclaiming its 40-week moving average (MA) in the ratio. — Katie Stockton, CNBC, 24 Aug. 2026 During the day, the menu reclaims fry bread, a dish with a knotty history among Indigenous groups, as they were forced to adapt to US government rations when forcibly displaced from their homes. — The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 24 Aug. 2026 We've been reclaiming a lot of our ancestral homelands, our village site which is Verona Marina. — Carmela Karcher, CBS News, 23 Aug. 2026 Ousmane Dembele Madrid and Mbappe’s biggest obstacle to reclaiming their Champions League crown is his former club PSG, spearheaded by France team-mate and Ballon d’Or holder Dembele. — Cerys Jones, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for reclaim

Recent Examples of Synonyms for reclaim

Verb

But to regain his eligibility, Carter had to repay $427 that was provided for a plane ticket.

— Trey Wallace OutKick, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Surgery, called a prostatectomy, has a longer recovery time, and causes initial incontinence in nearly all patients; though most regain bladder control within a year, 5% to 10% can experience permanent incontinence.

— Annalisa Merelli, STAT, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of regain

Verb

The developers now plan to rehabilitate the building to add apartments and tenant amenities while restoring the exterior to its historic appearance, alongside adding a nearby dog park and a surface parking lot.

— Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 3 Sep. 2026
The rescuers contacted The Arrow Fund, a Louisville nonprofitdedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming animal victims of abuse.

— Lillian Metzmeier, Louisville Courier Journal, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of rehabilitate

Verb

Environmentalists and lawmakers agree the new law will be expensive for large businesses that have to reduce their packaging or find alternative materials that can be recycled or composted.

— Susanne Rust Follow, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026
All city recycling drop-off locations except for the Strip District location will be closed for Labor Day.

— Finch Walker, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of recycle

Verb

As expected, the Commanders spent much of the offseason trying to recapture what worked two years ago.

— Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
As opposed to infantile regression, the oceanic feeling can also be understood as a means of recapturing a repressed sense of relation, connection, affinities.

— George Baker, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of recapture

Verb

With intermittent rain in the forecast over the next week, some sessions could be rescheduled or delayed for hours, corralling fans and shortening the time players have to recover for their next round.

— Aaron Short, Curbed, 3 Sep. 2026
The dangerous weather conditions — which included 20-knot winds and waves more than eight feet high — prohibited first responders from recovering five bodies that were also found on the vessel, officials said.

— Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of recover

Verb

Engineers must decouple search-data integration from my formatting engine so that retrieving web information does not automatically trigger a mandatory text truncation.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Sep. 2026
Matson testified that Paul Robinson visited to the fraternity house two days after his son posted bail, then drove with Matson to retrieve the safe while his son packed at the fraternity house.

— Finch Walker, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of retrieve

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“Reclaim.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reclaim. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of reclaim

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