recopy

recopy — verb

1. to write or type a piece of information over from the beginning, producing a fre

1.verbtransitiveC1
Definition

to write or type a piece of information over from the beginning, producing a fresh version that matches the original material

Example

Rohan decided to recopy the entire essay because his first draft had too many corrections.

infinitive: recopy + noun phrase

Asher's handwriting was so messy that he had to recopy the whole page.

Common collocations
  • recopy + notes / essay / page / text / document
  • recopy + from [source]
  • recopy + into [new document]
  • carefully recopy
  • have to recopy + noun phrase
Synonyms
  • rewrite

    implies making changes while writing again; recopy focuses on reproducing the original exactly

  • transcribe

    more formal, often means copying from one medium to another (e.g. audio to text)

  • duplicate

    can refer to mechanical or digital copying, not necessarily by hand

Grammar Patterns

recopy + noun phrase

Usage Note

Subject is typically a person; the action implies rewriting by hand or typing afresh, rather than photocopying or duplicating a digital file.

Common Mistakes

She recopied the same mistake into her final draft.
She copied the same mistake into her final draft again.
'recopy' means to produce a fresh copy from the original source; it does not mean to repeat or carry over an error.

Word family

  • recopied
    adjectiveC1
  • recopying
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

'Recopy' emphasises producing an exact written or typed duplicate of the original, usually by hand. 'Rewrite' allows for changes and improvements — a student rewrites an essay to make it better, but recopies a friend's notes to have a clean version. 'Transcribe' shifts medium or format, such as turning an audio recording into text. 'Duplicate' and 'reproduce' are broader and often mechanical — a photocopier duplicates pages, and a printer reproduces an image. Use 'recopy' when the focus is on the human act of writing something over so it looks neat or replaces a damaged original.

rewrite ↗transcribe ↗duplicate ↗reproduce ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • recopy from the original
  • recopy into a clean notebook

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Formed by adding the prefix 're-' (meaning 'again') to the verb 'copy'. The verb 'copy' entered English from French 'copier', which came from Latin 'copia', meaning 'abundance' or 'plenty'. In medieval Latin, 'copia' also took on the sense of 'a transcript' or 'a reproduction', leading to the modern meaning of making a duplicate.