reprendre

Reprendre is a French verb with several related meanings centered on the idea of taking again or starting anew. It can indicate resuming an activity after an interruption (reprendre le travail, reprendre une conversation), recovering or regaining something (reprendre des forces, reprendre le contrôle), or reclaiming what one had given up or borrowed (reprendre un livre, reprendre possession). It can also mean to retake or reoccupy, for example in military or strategic contexts.

The verb is formed from the prefix re- attached to prendre, and shares the regular conjugation pattern of most -re verbs. In the present tense the form is je reprends, tu reprends, il reprend, nous reprenons, vous reprenez, ils reprennent; the past participle is repris. Other common forms include je reprendrai, que je reprenne, ou reprenais, et repris au passé simple in literary contexts. The reflexive form se reprendre means to regain one’s composure or to recover from a setback (par exemple, il s’est repris après son erreur).

Common expressions include reprendre contact, reprendre le cours de sa vie, reprendre le travail, reprendre le souffle, reprendre le volant, reprendre possession. In music and cinema, une reprise (a noun) refers to a revival or a new performance of a motif or a work; reprendre un morceau means to perform it again. The phrase se reprendre is also used idiomatically to indicate a recovery of self-control.

Etymology: reprendre comes from re- (again) plus prendre (to take), a construction rooted in Old French and ultimately linked to Latin prendere/prehendere, meaning to seize or take.