reorient
verb
re·ori·ent
(ˌ)rē-ˈȯr-ē-ˌent 
reoriented; reorienting
: to orient (someone or something) again or differently: such as
a
: to change the orientation or direction of (something or someone)
reorient the antenna
reoriented herself so she was facing north
b
: to reacquaint (someone, especially oneself) with a situation, environment, etc.
woke up and reoriented myself to my surroundings
… returning servicewomen and men struggling to reorient themselves to civilian life.—
Molly Callahan
Molly Callahan
c
: to change the goal or emphasis of (something or someone)
… I stumbled into motherhood and was bewildered at … the volte-face required to reorient myself, my values and my way of life …—Madeleine Bunting
Madeleine Bunting… lacks nearly every resource necessary to reorient its archaic industrial economy …—David Remnick
David RemnickThe long-term potential of vast databases of genomic data to … reorient the debate on medical priorities …—Larry Downes and Paul Nunes
Larry Downes and Paul Nunes
also
: to direct (something) toward the interests of a different group
… reorienting its policy priorities to the working class. —Franklin Foer
Franklin Foer
reorientation
(ˌ)rē-ˌȯr-ē-ən-ˈtā-shən
noun
-ˌen-
plural reorientations
Many soldiers also find blogging a useful way to help deal with reorientation to civilian life …
—Brad Knickerbocker
Brad Knickerbocker
Examples of reorient in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The design is meant to reorient us, to take us on a trail walked not by humans but traversed and carved by elephants, a creature still misunderstood, vilified and hunted for its cataclysmic-like ability to reshape land, and sometimes communities.
—Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Freed from the ideologues who have held them hostage, even most bureaucrats serving in the Islamic Republic today could rediscover the best of our history and reorient their efforts toward our nation’s improvement.
—Arash Azizi, Time, 3 Feb. 2026
Recognizing this paradox could reorient many decision makers.
—Eric Siegel, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
The hire — hailed by the US president — also reflects the rightward pivot of Mark Zuckerberg, who was early to warm to Trump and reorient Meta’s policies toward more conservative and centrist causes.
—J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 12 Jan. 2026
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Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Freed from the ideologues who have held them hostage, even most bureaucrats serving in the Islamic Republic today could rediscover the best of our history and reorient their efforts toward our nation’s improvement.
—Arash Azizi, Time, 3 Feb. 2026
Recognizing this paradox could reorient many decision makers.
—Eric Siegel, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
The hire — hailed by the US president — also reflects the rightward pivot of Mark Zuckerberg, who was early to warm to Trump and reorient Meta’s policies toward more conservative and centrist causes.
—J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reorient
Cite this Entry
“Reorient.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reorient. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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