reassign

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "reassign" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it when discussing the act of assigning something or someone to a different role, task, or position. Example: "Due to the recent changes in the project, we will need to reassign team members to different tasks to ensure efficiency."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Encyclopedias

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

Arizona followed this up with a proposal to reassign teachers with heavy accents.

The Economist

Commanders are loth to reassign troops to their protection, when it would mean diverting them from building up the Afghan forces.The retrograde is to reach its peak flow later this year.

The Economist

Dr Wang has managed to reassign one of the stop codons in E. coli, the bacterial workhorse of geneticists, to recognise an unnatural amino acid.

The Economist

Eventually, he must also decide whether to merge or reassign the responsibilities of America's multiple federal and state regulators.

The Economist

Some 40 districts across America now do something similar, often using the receipt of free or reduced-price lunches as a simple proxy for low-income status.Wake County, which includes the city of Raleigh, does not reassign students individually.

The Economist

It will be interesting to see whether the Obama administration can convince the lame-duck Democratic Congress to reassign the money or whether the GOP-run House will try to cancel the spending entirely next year.

The Economist

Last month, when NBC tried to reassign a reporter who witnessed an Israeli bombardment that killed four children playing on a Gaza beach, he was reinstated after a furious social-media campaign.

The Economist

He governed largely by decree, all but ignoring Congress, where a pliant majority granted him "superpowers" to reassign budget allocations freely.

The Economist

An article in Tuesday's Journal titled "Fed Feels Pressure to Protect Consumers" (subscription required) discusses the possibility that Congressional leaders might reassign the Fed's broad power to regulate banking practices to a more aggressive regulatory body.

The Economist

The paper was brought to the brink of bankruptcy, and Kim was forced to let some reporters go and reassign others.

Encyclopedia Britannica

She weathered frequent contretemps with Howell Raines, then the paper's executive editor, over her editorial philosophy and successfully evaded his attempt to reassign her to the Times book review.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "reassign" to indicate a deliberate shift in responsibilities or resources, differentiating it from temporary assignments or incidental changes.

Common error

Avoid using "reassign" when you mean to delegate a task. "Reassign" implies a permanent or significant shift, while delegation is often temporary and specific to a single task.

Linguistic Context

The primary grammatical function of "reassign" is as a transitive verb. It requires a direct object, indicating what is being assigned again. As Ludwig AI confirms, it is used to indicate the act of assigning something again.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

75%

Encyclopedias

15%

Formal & Business

10%

Less common in

Science

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the verb "reassign" is used to describe the act of assigning something or someone to a different role or task, indicating a deliberate shift. Ludwig AI confirms that "reassign" is grammatically sound and frequently employed in various contexts, especially within news and media. When using "reassign", ensure clarity by specifying what is being reassigned and to whom. Avoid confusing it with delegation, which implies a temporary assignment. Consider alternatives like "reallocate" or "transfer" for nuanced meanings. Top authoritative sources that feature "reassign" include The New York Times, The Economist, and The Guardian, solidifying its position as a versatile and widely accepted term.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

Reallocate

Focuses on the redistribution of resources or tasks to different areas or individuals.

Transfer

Emphasizes the movement of someone or something from one place or role to another.

Redesignate

Highlights a formal change in designation or assignment.

Move

A more general term for shifting someone or something to a new position.

Re-task

Specifically refers to assigning a new task or set of tasks.

Shift

Implies a change in focus or direction, often involving a change in assignment.

Change assignment

A straightforward description of altering someone's assigned duty or position.

Reapportion

Suggests a redistribution of resources or responsibilities based on a new plan.

Re-deploy

Often used in military or strategic contexts to indicate a shift in deployment.

Assign anew

Emphasizes the act of assigning something with a new or fresh perspective.

FAQs

How do you use "reassign" in a sentence?

You can use "reassign" to indicate the act of assigning someone or something to a different role, task, or position. For example, "The manager decided to "reassign" the project to a more experienced team member."

What is a good alternative to "reassign"?

Depending on the context, alternatives to "reassign" include "reallocate", "transfer", or "redesignate". Choose the word that best fits the specific nuance you want to convey.

Is it correct to say "reassign back"?

While not grammatically incorrect, "reassign back" can be redundant. It's generally clearer to simply use ""reassign"" unless you specifically need to emphasize that something is being reassigned to a previous state.

What's the difference between "reassign" and "assign"?

"Assign" means to give someone a task or job, while ""reassign"" means to give someone a different task or job, implying a change from a previous assignment.