Reformed

How to spell reformed

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce reformed

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does reformed mean?

1. adjectiveHaving abandoned previous bad habits or behaviour in favour of better conduct.
2. verbChanged or improved an institution, system, or practice by altering it for the better.

Reformed in a sentence

• adjective

  The reformed gambler now keeps well away from every casino in town.

• verb

  The new government reformed the outdated tax system within its first year.

• adjective

  As a reformed smoker, he could no longer stand the smell of cigarettes.

• verb

  The board reformed its hiring rules after the complaints were reviewed.

Where does reformed come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb reformare, which combined re- meaning 'again' with formare meaning 'to shape or form', the latter built on forma, the Latin noun for a shape or pattern. The literal sense was therefore 'to shape something anew', and from that came the idea of remaking something into a better state. English picked it up through Old French reformer during the 1300s, at first in the sense of restoring or repairing institutions and conduct. By the 1500s the word had taken on its strong religious charge during the Protestant Reformation, when churches were 'reformed' away from older practice. The everyday modern senses, both the past-tense verb and the adjective describing a person who has given up bad habits, sit comfortably on that same root idea of being shaped again for the better.

How the word is built

• re- (again)
• form (from Latin forma: shape, form)
• -ed (past tense / adjective suffix)