recycle

Etymology

From re- + cycle.

verb

1. (transitive) To break down and reuse component materials.
   Both paper and plastic can be recycled.
2. (transitive) To reuse as a whole.
   Jokes are recycled so frequently, it’s as if comedy writing was eating a hole in the ozone layer: If the audience had a nickel for every time a character on one side of the frame says something could never happen as it simultaneously happens on the other side of the frame, they’d have enough to pay the surcharge for the movie’s badly implemented 3-D. 12 July 2012, Sam Adams, “Ice Age: Continental Drift”, in AV Club
   He Huw Jones] was hauled down in England’s 22 but, when the ball was quickly recycled, [Finn] Russell’s miss-pass gave Sean Maitland the room to score in the left corner. 24 February 2018, Paul Rees, “Finn Russell masterminds historic Scotland victory over England”, in The Guardian, London, archived from the original on 2018-04-22
3. (transitive) To collect or place in a bin for recycling.
   Most cans, bottles, and jars need to be rinsed, so recycle while you are doing dishes. 1990, Laurence Sombke, The Solution to Pollution: 101 Things You Can Do to Clean Up Your Environment, Sandy, Oregon: MasterMedia, p 22
   Recycling is no longer a chore when this convenient recycling center is a fixture in your kitchen. 2003, The Complete Guide to Easy Woodworking Projects: 50 Projects You Can Build With Hand Power Tools, Minneapolis: Creative Publishing International, page 270
   You'll find many configurations, including models that hide behind a single cabinet door and conceal from one to three bins, so you can recycle at the same spot where you dispose of trash. 2006, Elaine Martin Petrowski, Design Ideas for Home Storage, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Creative Homeowner, page 133
4. (intransitive, ergative) To be recycled.
   Sulfur recycles in the sulfur cycle.
5. (US) To discard into a recycling bin.
6. (US, military, transitive) To put (a person) through a course of training again.
   Recruits cannot fail this portion of their training and become a Marine. Anyone who fails may be “recycled” through training up to three more times to try again, but will be sent home if success in this program is not achieved. 2006, Barbara Schading, Richard Schading, A Civilian's Guide to the U.S. Military, page 102
7. (roller derby) To skate toward the rear of the engagement zone to maximize the time that an opposing jammer must spend before returning to the action.

noun

1. An act of recycling.
   First, there will be little reaction in the settler so that the concentrations of soluble constituents in the recycle stream are the same as those in the bioreactor. Because all soluble concentrations are the same, the recycle of soluble constituents around the system has no impact on system performance. 2011, C. P. Leslie Grady, Jr., Glen T. Daigger, Nancy G. Love, Biological Wastewater Treatment, Third Edition, page 189
   If the agency does not approve recycle of the cadet who failed to qualify, the cadet is sent home and is not hired by the department who sponsored him or her in the academy. 2020, Gary Gray, MUD on MY BADGE