Standard Lemma guide

recycling

noun · verb · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: R IY0 S AY1 K AH0 L IH0 NG Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
  • CMU ARPABET 2: R IY0 S AY1 K L IH0 NG Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Those materials culled for recycling.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

Examples

  • He plans to haul the recycling in on Saturday.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Something made by recycling something else.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, figuratively, uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

present participle and gerund of recycle

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: form-of, gerund, participle, present

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

the act of processing used or abandoned materials for use in creating new products

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: use, usage, utilization, utilisation, employment, exercise

Narrower terms: bottle collection

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

61 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: إِعَادَةْ تَدْوِير (ʔiʕādat tadwīr) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Azerbaijani: təkrar emal — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Azerbaijani: utilizasiya — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Bulgarian: рецикли́ране (reciklírane) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Catalan: reciclatge — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Chinese Mandarin: 回收 (huíshōu) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Chinese Mandarin: 資源回收再利用 /资源回收再利用 (zīyuán huíshōu zài lìyòng) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Chinese Mandarin: 循環再造 /循环再造 (xúnhuán zàizào) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Czech: recyklace — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Danish: genbrug — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Danish: genanvendelse — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Dutch: recyclage — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Dutch: recycling — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Estonian: jäätmekäitlus — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Faroese: endurnýtsla — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Finnish: kierrätys — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Finnish: kierrättäminen — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • French: recyclage — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Galician: reciclaxe — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Georgian: გადამუშავება (gadamušaveba) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Georgian: ნარჩენების გადამუშავება (narčenebis gadamušaveba) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • German: Recycling — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • German: Wiederverwertung — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Greek: ανακύκλωση (anakýklosi) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Greenlandic: atoqqiineq — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Hindi: पुनर्चक्रण (punarcakraṇ) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Hungarian: újrahasznosítás — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Icelandic: endurnýting — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Irish: athchúrsáil — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Italian: riciclaggio dei rifiuti — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Japanese: リサイクル (risaikuru) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Japanese: 再使用 (saishiyō) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Japanese: リユース (riyūsu) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Japanese: 再利用 (sairiyō) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Korean: 재활용 (jaehwaryong) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Macedonian: рециклирање (recikliranje) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Macedonian: рецикла́жа (recikláža) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Norman: èrcycliage — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Norman: èrcycliéthie — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Norwegian Bokmål: gjenbruk — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Norwegian Bokmål: resirkulering — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Persian: بازیافت (bâzyâft) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Polish: recykling — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Polish: recyklizacja — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Portuguese: reciclagem — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Romanian: reciclare — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Russian: перерабо́тка отхо́дов (pererabótka otxódov) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Russian: втори́чная перерабо́тка (vtoríčnaja pererabótka) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Russian: реци́клинг (recíkling) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Russian: рецикли́рование (reciklírovanije) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Russian: утилиза́ция отхо́дов (utilizácija otxódov) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Russian: риса́йклинг (risájkling) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Scottish Gaelic: ath-chuairteachadh — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Serbo-Croatian: рециклирање — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Serbo-Croatian: recikliranje — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Slovene: recikliranje — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Spanish: reciclaje — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Swedish: återvinning — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Swedish: återanvändning — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Tamil: மறுசுழற்சி (maṟucuḻaṟci) — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
  • Turkish: geri dönüşüm — the practice of sorting and collecting waste materials for new use
Real reading context

recycling in complete knowledge articles