Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adverb Once more; anew.
  • adverb To a previous place, position, or state.
  • adverb Furthermore; moreover.
  • adverb On the other hand.
  • adverb In return; in response.
  • idiom (again and again) Repeatedly; frequently.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Of motion or direction: Back: in the opposite direction; to or toward a former or the original position; to the same place or person: often strengthened with back.
  • Of action: Back; in return; in reply, response, answer, echo.
  • Of action or fact as related to time, or of time simply: Once more; in addition; another time; anew: marking repetition
  • Of action or existence: as, to do anything again; he had to make it all over again.
  • Of number or quantity: only in the phrases as much or as many again (= twice as much or as many), half as much again (= once and a half as much), etc.
  • Of kind or character: marking resemblance.
  • Of succession of thought: Once more; in continuation; in an additional case or instance; moreover; besides (marking transition); on the other hand (marking contrast).
  • Against.
  • Against the time that: like against, conj.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • preposition obsolete Against; also, towards (in order to meet).
  • adverb In return, back.
  • adverb Another time; once more; anew.
  • adverb Once repeated; -- of quantity.
  • adverb Archaic In any other place.
  • adverb On the other hand.
  • adverb Moreover; besides; further.
  • adverb more than once; often; repeatedly.
  • adverb now and then; occasionally.
  • adverb [Obs.] to and fro.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • preposition obsolete Against.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adverb anew

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English (influenced by Old Norse i gegn, again), from Old English ongeagn, against.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English again, ayain, anȝen, from Old English onġēan ("towards, against, opposite to, contrary to, against, in exchange for, opposite, back, again, anew, also"), equivalent to a- +‎ gain (“against”). Cognate with Danish igen ("again"), Swedish igen ("again, back").

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Examples

  • It delivered me to this unknown rock, where trees meet on hill-tops to tangle dark branches under fog shot with dankness and blight, and I am always welcome because I am the only one — and the funny birds who tell no jokes, and the giant bile-squirting flowers, and the delirious prancing monkeys, and I have nothing in particular to say, and I say it again and again 

    Sunk 2010

  • “Sitting again awn the lap of God.” *muffled sound ov purrson traing nawt to crai again*

    Mahm!!! - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger? 2008

  • Right now I'm listening to "Strawberry Gashes" and being once again stunned that Ryan doesn't see this as a happy song ... it's so pretty and it leaves my blood racing and my entire body trembling with the need to touch him. * shrugs again*

    jaxraven Diary Entry jaxraven 2003

  • After a while, she caught the blur for a moment again, lost it again .

    The Complete Federation Of The Hub Schmitz, James H. 2000

  • “I had a feeling  …   And when you saw him again, after twenty years, all the old jealousy built up again  …  ”

    Maigret and the Loner Simenon, Georges, 1903- 1971

  • “I had a feeling  …   And when you saw him again, after twenty years, all the old jealousy built up again  …  ”

    Maigret and the Loner Simenon, Georges -101 1971

  • And the third thing was that Gibreel Farishta opened his eyes to find himself collapsed, once again, on Alleluia Cone's doorstep, begging her forgiveness, weeping _O God, it happened, it really happened again_.

    The Satanic Verses Rushdie, Salman 1967

  • It was a terrible strain on me to keep her at school, ma'am, and again and _again_ I've thought I couldn't stand it, what with her being in the shop only in the afternoon, and the washing, and trying to keep her clothes always nice; though she's been as good as

    Lippincott's Magazine, October 1885 Various

  • But would Age be young again merely _to grow old again_?

    Over the Fireside with Silent Friends Richard King 1913

  • And again I sunk into visions of Ligeia -- and again (what marvel that I shudder while I write?), _again_ there reached my ears a low sob from the region of the ebony bed.

    Famous Modern Ghost Stories Leonid Nikolayevich Andreyev 1895

Comments

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  • I dislike when this is used to rhyme with words like "pain" in poetry. Sure, you can pronounce it that way, but I don't and it always throws me.

    February 24, 2007

  • Why do you hate British people so much?

    February 24, 2007