retread

/ɹiːˈtɹɛd/

retread verb: to replace the traction-providing surface of a vehicle that employs tires, tracks or treads.

Verb (1)

retread (third-person singular simple present retreads, present participle retreading, simple past and past participle retreaded)

To replace the traction-providing surface of a vehicle that employs tires, tracks or treads.
(UK) To renew the tread of a tyre, providing a cheaper alternative to buying a new tyre, but potentially introducing a risk of premature failure if performed improperly.
- There was no evidence to suggest that the fact that both tyres had been retreaded 3 times was a factor in the failure occurrence. This type of aircraft tyre (Type VII) is routinely retreaded 6 times or more before being taken out of service.1993 June, Presidency of Civil Aviation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, “1.12.13.6.3 Visual and Microscopic Examinations”, in McDonnell-Douglas DC-8-61, C-GMXQ, accident at King Abdulaziz...
Synonyms:

recap

retread (plural retreads)

A used tire whose surface, the tread, has been replaced to extend its life and use.
(slang) A person who re-entered military service in World War II after serving in World War I.
- In Our War the Retreads usually slinked in over-aged, over-weight and overcautious in the face of a new generation.1950, Air Force Association, United States Army, Air Force Magazine
- They were retreads and recruits under a small cadre of Regular Army officers and noncoms.1971, Brian Garfield, The thousand-mile war: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians

retread (third-person singular simple present retreads, present participle retreading, simple past retrod, past participle retrodden)

(transitive) To tread again, to walk along again, to follow a path again.
- As a child I had not been content with the results promised by the modern professors of natural science. With a confusion of ideas only to be accounted for by my extreme youth and my want of a guide on such matters, I had retrod the steps of knowledge along the paths of time and exchanged the...1818, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

retread (plural retreads)

(figuratively, sometimes) A return over ground previously covered; a retraversal or repetition.
- But The West Side Waltz is otherwise a tedious retread of Mr. Thompson's previous effort, On Golden Pond.1998, Frank Rich, Hot seat: theater criticism for the New York times, 1980–1993
- It uses a howitzer to shoot drugged fish in a barrel, inserts flabby lite-surrealism where the comedy might otherwise go and the plot turns out to be a retread of JM Barrie’s stage-play The Admirable Crichton.2022 May 21, Peter Bradshaw, “Triangle of Sadness review – heavy-handed satire on the super-rich loses its shape”, in The Guardian

உருளிப்பட்டை புதுப்பி

Verb
third-person singular present	retreads
present participle	retreading
past participle	retreaded
past	retreaded
past	retrod
past participle	retrodden
alternative form	re-tread
Noun
plural	retreads

From re- + tread (“grooves carved into the face of a tire”, noun).

From re- + tread (verb).

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

What does retread mean?: Retread means to replace the traction-providing surface of a vehicle that employs tires, tracks or treads.
What is retread in Tamil?: Retread in Tamil is உருளிப்பட்டை புதுப்பி. See Retread meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is retread?: Retread can be a verb or a noun.
How do you pronounce retread?: Retread is pronounced /ɹiːˈtɹɛd/.
What is the past tense of retread?: The past tense of retread is retreaded.

Adapted from Wiktionary: retread (page history and authors); retread (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-retread (verb).wav, En-au-retread.ogg.

Cite this entry: “retread.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/retread. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.