rearrange

verb

re·​ar·​range ˌrē-ə-ˈrānj 

rearranged; rearranging

transitive verb

: to arrange (something or someone) again in a different way

rearranged the flowers on the table

rearrange the furniture

I rearranged my hair/clothes/glasses.

… anagrams, which are words or phrases rearranged to form different words or phrases.

—Carolyn Phelan

… massaging his knees while he talks, frequently rearranging himself into a more comfortable position.

—Daniel Ross

Sarah is more or less grimacing now …. In a minute, she'll rearrange her face to look cheerful.

—Aurelie Sheehan

… rearranging their lives … to go back to school, to get the education that was denied them or that they did not want when they were young.

—Ruth Dorgan

… thousands of people had to cancel or rearrange their travel plans.

—Ken Young

Examples of rearrange in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Trump Media's live TV streaming play is rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic, strategist says Own GameStop or AMC stock? —Quartz, 10 June 2024

As far as a kid is concerned, a father can do anything, even rearrange the heavens to give one of his children more time in the sun. —Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 10 June 2024

There are puzzles: some rip the very fabric of Indika’s reality apart; others rearrange entire neighborhoods. —Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 5 June 2024

College officials encouraged students who could rearrange their plans to leave campus early. —Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 1 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1778, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

rearrange

verb

re·​ar·​range

ˌrē-ə-ˈrānj

: to arrange again usually in a different way

rearranged the furniture

rearrangement noun