again

adverb

ə-ˈgen How to pronounce again (audio)
-ˈgin,
-ˈgān
1
: in return : back
… swore he would pay him again when he was able.William Shakespeare
2
a
: another time : once more : anew
I shall not look upon his like again.William Shakespeare
b
used to introduce a statement that repeats and stresses something previously said
Again, I ask, why are you doing this?
c
used to ask someone to repeat something that was not heard or understood clearly
I'm sorry, what was your name again?
3
: on the other hand
He might go, and again he might not.
4
: in addition : besides
Again, there is another matter to consider.

Examples of again in a Sentence

Please, come see us again. It was nice to see my friends again. She wants to prove that she can do it again. Things are back to normal again. When we heard the news, we all said, “Oh no! Not again!”. She demonstrated yet again her remarkable artistic talents. It'll just be the same thing all over again. When he stood up, he got so dizzy that he had to sit down again.
Recent Examples on the Web And watched everyone else around me succeed, time and time again. Michael Schneider, Variety, 14 Mar. 2024 At the conclusion of the roundtable, Saban again expressed his worry for the future of college sports. Kevin Dotson, CNN, 13 Mar. 2024 The man is scheduled to be in court again April 29 for a status hearing on the case. Jolene Almendarez, The Enquirer, 13 Mar. 2024 When the Supreme Court again narrowly upheld affirmative action in college admissions in the early 2000s, Blum set his sights on killing it altogether. Nikole Hannah-Jones, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024 Ari Brown on piano and reeds, with bassist Malachi Favors, once again round out The Ritual Trio for this epic performance. Shannon J. Effinger, SPIN, 13 Mar. 2024 Brittany Mahomes Shares Cute Video of Son Bronze Clutching Football with Dad Patrick on Vacation Sterling was seen again with her dad as the pair posed together on a golf course. Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 12 Mar. 2024 Winds are again from the west at a lower 5 to 10 mph. Matt Rogers, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024 And again, this was a pre-pandemic trend, although during the pandemic, there was a period of time when builders built slightly larger homes since that’s what people wanted. Alena Botros, Fortune, 12 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'again.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ayen, ayein, ayan, ageyn, again "back, in the opposite direction, to a former state, once more, another time," going back to Old English ongeagn, ongeæn, ongēan, ongān, ongegn, ongēn, agēn (Northumbrian ongægn, ongǣn), (compare parallel compounds in Old Saxon angegin "once more, toward," Old High German ingagan, ingegin "in opposition") from on-, a- on entry 1, a- entry 1 + -geagn (going back to Germanic *gagna-, whence Old High German gagan "towards, against," Old Norse gagn- "against, counter, through") or -gegn (going back to Germanic *gagni-, whence Old Saxon & Old High German gegin "against," Old Frisian jēn, Old Norse gegn)

Note: It has been assumed that certain Old English forms, such as ongeagn, reflected an original *gagna-, and others, such as ongegn, an original *gegni-, though the evidence for the latter in Old English is not entirely clear. The rare instances of ongegn could represent "palatal monophthongization" of ongeagn, while ongēn would be a contraction of ongegn—this would leave only reflexes of *gagna- in Old English. Old English ongān (continued in Middle English ayan) apparently represents a monophthongization of ongēan after the crest of the diphthong had shifted forward. Middle English ayen, the most common southern form well into the 14th century, may be the outcome of either ongēan or ongēn. The form ayein would appear to directly continue ongegn. Originally northern again is presumed to have the velar /g/ from Old Norse i gegn. The shortened vowel in the usual pronunciation of again is probably due to against, where it was conditioned by the final consonant cluster. The origin of Germanic *gagna-, *gegni- (Gothic correspondent lacking) is obscure.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of again was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near again

Cite this Entry

“Again.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/again. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

again

adverb
ə-ˈgen How to pronounce again (audio)
-ˈgin,
-ˈgān
1
: in return
send the message and bring us word again
2
: another time : anew
come see us again
3
: in addition
half as much again
4
: on the other hand
I may, and again I may not
5
: moreover, further
again, there is another matter to consider
Etymology

Old English ongēan "opposite, back"

More from Merriam-Webster on again

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!