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to reconstitute

to reconstitute

2 5.4
Add water to dried food or powder to make it ready to eat
  • verb
  • /ˌriːˈkɒnstɪˌtjuːt/
translation icon : reconstituir
  • Dehydrated foods require only water to reconstitute.
  • reconstituted tobacco

Examples

  • Be sure to browse the recommendations around the dried-up beans so they will reconstitute back to their original plumpness.

    Blog text (16)
  • Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until the tomatoes are reconstituted, about 30 minutes.

  • You stick a a water gun into it and squirt water in, you know, to reconstitute it, but it's it's freeze dried food.

  • It's fully reconstituted now, so the yolk inside feels a little different.

  • Is that a dried fish that's been reconstituted in pickle brine?

  • The hot lunch is turkey with reconstituted dried mashed potatoes and gravy, a damp green vegetable, and a cookie.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Boiled, not bottled mineral water, must be used for reconstituting baby milk, as mineral water can have a high salt content, which is dangerous for babies.

    Academic text (2012)
  • And then there were those five infants who had eaten no food at all—just formula reconstituted with tap water—all of whom were ill.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Just add water, and the noodles reconstitute in 10 to 15 minutes.

  • The customer would then add the water on-site to reconstitute the product.

Synonyms

to rehydrate
vsto reconstitute
11 3.9

To add water to something dry to make it moist again

is for restoring powder or food by adding liquid
to resuspend
vsto reconstitute
  • Specialized
1 8.1

To mix small particles or cells that have settled so they float in a liquid again

is for restoring dry powders by adding liquid rather than suspending particles

Antonyms

2.0

Destroy or badly damage something so it cannot be used

1 4.8

Remove almost all water from food to keep it for longer

How Rehydrated

to reconstitute
2 5.4
to rehydrate
11 3.9
to dissolve
64 2.4
to wet
26 1.0
to moisten
7 3.0

Surface Forms

reconstitute infinitive
reconstituted past participle
reconstituting present participle
reconstitutes third person singular

Morphology

reconstitute = constitute (semi-transparent) = re + constitute

The idea of restoring something to its former composition fits 're-' plus 'constitute', but the specific technical use for dried food or powder is narrower than the literal composition suggests.

Etymology

Reconstitute combines the prefix re- ('again') with constitute ('set up'), the same root as constitution. So, when you add water to powder and 'make it again', you are reconstituting it back into its original form.