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to rethread

to rethread

1 5.2
Put a thread through a needle or small hole
  • verb
  • /ˌriːˈθrɛd/
translation icon : rethread
  • Emma calmly rethreaded her needle and went back to embroidering her nosegay.

Examples

  • Dr. Beaumont worked quickly, pausing only to rethread his needle.

  • We gotta rethread the whole machine.

  • Emma calmly rethreaded her needle and went back to embroidering her nosegay.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Sewing machine operators said the thread kept breaking, so they spent half their day rethreading the machines.

Synonyms

to thread
vsto rethread
22 3.0

To pass a thin string through a small hole or eye

put a thin string through the same opening again instead of the first time
to thread the needle
vsto rethread
3 7.6

To pass something carefully through a very small gap or to do a very precise and difficult action

means doing the same fine passing again rather than one careful effort
to relace
vsto rethread
1 7.3

Put shoe strings back through the holes of boots or shoes again so they fit

put a thin string through any small opening again rather than only eyelets

Antonyms

1.5

To move something or someone away from a place

Surface Forms

rethread infinitive
rethreaded past
rethreaded past participle
rethreading present participle
rethreads third person singular

Morphology

rethread = thread (transparent) = re + thread

Adding 're-' to the verb 'thread' clearly gives the meaning of threading something again.

Etymology

Rethread comes from the prefix re- meaning 'again' and thread meaning 'a thin string'. A helpful image is putting the string back through a needle, so to rethread is to put the thread through a needle or hole again.