re ‧ cov ‧ er W2 AC /rɪˈkʌvə $ -ər/ BrE AmE verb
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ recover ; noun : ↑ recovery ]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: recovrer , from Latin recuperare ; ⇨ ↑ recuperate ]
1 . [intransitive] to get better after an illness, accident, shock etc:
After a few days of fever, she began to recover.
recover from
He’s in hospital, recovering from a heart attack.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say someone gets better rather than recovers , especially when talking about less serious illnesses, injuries, or operations.
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Don’t worry. You’ll soon get better.
2 . [intransitive] to return to a normal condition after a period of trouble or difficulty:
The tourist industry is recovering to pre-war levels.
recover from
Yesterday morning shares seemed to recover from Monday’s collapse.
3 . [transitive] to get back something that was taken from you, lost, or almost destroyed:
Four paintings stolen from the gallery have been recovered.
recover something from something
Two bodies were recovered from the wreckage.
4 . [transitive] to get back an amount of money that you have spent or lost SYN recoup :
He was entitled to recover damages from the defendants.
5 . [transitive] to get back an ability, a sense, or control over your feelings, movements etc after a period without it SYN regain :
It was some hours before she recovered consciousness.
Once she stumbled, but somehow she recovered her balance and carried on running.
recover yourself
He recovered himself enough to speak calmly.
—recoverable adjective
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ recover to become healthy again after you have been seriously ill or injured, or had a bad experience:
My mother’s been very ill, and she’s still in hospital recovering.
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She needed time to recover from the shock.
▪ get better to recover from an injury or illness. In everyday English, people usually say get better rather than recover :
I hope you get better soon.
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My back’s been quite bad recently, but it’s getting better slowly.
▪ get over something to recover from a bad experience, or a minor illness. In everyday English, people usually say get over rather than recover :
She never got over his death.
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I’m getting over my cold.
▪ get well to recover from an illness or operation – used especially when you are writing to encourage someone to recover:
Get well soon – we all miss you!
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I hope you get well quickly.
▪ be back on your feet to have recovered and be able to live life as usual again:
It may take a week or two until you’re back on your feet.
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It’s great to see you back on your feet!
▪ be on the mend to be showing definite signs of recovering after an illness or injury:
I’m glad to see you’re on the mend again.
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Kathy’s been quite ill with flu, but she seems to be on the mend now.
▪ recuperate formal to spend time resting and getting your health or energy back, after you have had an illness or had a difficult or tiring experience:
It had been a hard year, and I needed a few weeks in the sun in order to recuperate.
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He is recuperating from a heart attack.
▪ convalesce /ˌkɒnvəˈles $ ˌkɑːn-/ formal to spend a long period of time recovering from a serious illness, especially by resting in a comfortable or warm place:
She was at home convalescing after major surgery.