Recapture

Recapture

Verb & Noun · /ˌriːˈkæptʃə/ · to capture again; to recover something lost; to re-experience a feeling or quality

Definition

To recapture means to take or gain something again after it has been lost or escaped. A soldier recaptures a position. A company recaptures its lost market share. But recapture also works emotionally — you recapture the excitement of a first day at work, the spirit of a creative project, or the mood of a summer holiday. As a noun, a recapture is the act of regaining that person, place, feeling, or quality.

Origin

Built from the prefix re- (again) and capture, from Latin captura, from capere — to seize, to take. The word has been in English since the 18th century, initially in military contexts. Over time it expanded from physical seizure to the recapture of intangible qualities: atmosphere, energy, mood, style.