What does reinnervate mean?
Reinnervate is a formal verb meaning to supply an organ, muscle, or other tissue with nerve impulses again, thereby restoring sensation, movement, or responsiveness. In medical and physiological contexts, it describes a restoration of neural control after nerve injury, transplantation, or another disruption. The word can also be used more broadly and figuratively for renewing vitality, attention, or activity: a new campaign may reinnervate an organization, or a performer may reinnervate a familiar piece. Its prefix re-, meaning “again,” combines with innervate, “to supply with nerves,” to make the central idea especially clear: neural supply is renewed. Although reinnervate is more precise and evocative than revive in technical writing, it can sound somewhat unusual in everyday speech. Dictionaries commonly treat it as a transitive verb, with the part receiving renewed nerve supply serving as its object.
verbTo supply an organ, muscle, or other part of the body with nerve impulses again, restoring sensation, movement, or responsiveness. It can also mean to revive or stimulate something that has become inactive.
- To restore nerve supply or neural control to an organ, muscle, limb, or other body part.
- To revive, reactivate, or renew something that has become ineffective or inactive.
"The surgery aims to reinnervate the damaged muscles of her shoulder."
"Physical therapy may help reinnervate muscles weakened by nerve damage."
"The young ensemble reinnervated the well-known concerto with bold new arrangements."
The word tells its own story: re- means “again,” while innervate means “supply with nerves”—so to reinnervate is to give neural control a second life.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does reinnervate come from?
The verb reinnervate was formed in English by combining the prefix re-, meaning “again,” with innervate, meaning “to supply with nerves.” Innervate derives from Latin innervāre, built from in-, meaning “into” or “upon,” and nervus, meaning “nerve” or “sinew.” Its English cognate family includes innervate, innervation, nervous, and nerve, all of which reflect the same Latin root.
Related word forms
How reinnervate is actually used
Reinnervate is formal and relatively uncommon. Its literal medical sense is precise, while its figurative use is more literary or metaphorical and may suggest vigorous renewal rather than a complete restoration.
Easily confused with reinnervate
Innervate means to supply an organ or body part with nerves or nerve impulses, whereas reinnervate implies restoring or renewing that supply.