reclamation
reclamation — noun
1. the process of transforming unusable or poor-quality land into areas that can be
the process of transforming unusable or poor-quality land into areas that can be built on or used for growing food
The city's land reclamation project turned wetlands into a park with playgrounds and walking paths.
collocation: land reclamation project
Large areas of coastal land were created through reclamation for the new airport runways.
passive: were created through reclamation
Farmers used reclamation to turn dry desert valleys into fields of wheat and corn.
The government paid for reclamation of old mining land so houses could be built there.
- landfill
specifically filling land with waste materials to raise its level; narrower than reclamation
- drainage
removing water from wet land; one method within reclamation, not the whole process
- rehabilitation
often used for restoring land after industrial damage; overlaps with reclamation in environmental contexts
- erosion
the natural wearing away of land, opposite of building it up
- abandonment
giving up land instead of restoring it
文法句型
reclamation + of + noun phrase
land/waste/water + reclamation
用法筆記
Uncountable when referring to the general concept. When paired with a specific location or type, it commonly appears in compound-noun form (land reclamation, coastal reclamation) or with 'of' (reclamation of marshland).
常見錯誤
2. the process of treating unwanted materials or by-products so that useful substan
the process of treating unwanted materials or by-products so that useful substances can be extracted and used again
A modern reclamation plant can separate plastics, metals, and glass from household rubbish automatically.
collocation: reclamation plant
The factory invested in water reclamation technology to filter and reuse all of its wastewater.
collocation: water reclamation technology
Lithium reclamation from old batteries reduces the need to mine new materials.
Through reclamation, the recycling center turns old mobile phones into valuable copper and gold components.
- disposal
getting rid of waste rather than recovering value from it
文法句型
reclamation + of + noun phrase
materials/water/waste + reclamation
用法筆記
Often interchangeable with 'recycling' for everyday materials, but 'reclamation' is preferred in industrial and engineering contexts where the focus is on extracting value from complex or difficult waste streams.
常見錯誤
3. the act of helping someone who has committed wrongs or made serious mistakes to
the act of helping someone who has committed wrongs or made serious mistakes to change their behaviour and return to a better way of living
The prison's reclamation program offers classes and job training to help prisoners restart their lives.
collocation: reclamation program
After years of struggle, a reclamation program helped Mauricio turn his life around, and he now counsels young addicts.
The charity focuses on the reclamation of street children through education and family support.
Moral reclamation was the main goal of the community's program for former gang members.
- rehabilitation
the standard modern term in criminal justice and social work; more neutral in tone
- reform
broader and more common; can apply to systems or individuals without formal overtones
- redemption
carries strong moral or religious meaning; implies forgiveness as well as change
- corruption
the process of becoming morally bad, opposite of reform
- recidivism
returning to criminal behaviour after efforts at reform
文法句型
reclamation + of + person
personal/spiritual/moral + reclamation
用法筆記
This sense is uncommon in everyday English and has a formal, somewhat old-fashioned tone. In modern contexts, 'rehabilitation' is far more frequent for criminal justice and social work. Reclamation may carry moral or religious overtones.
常見錯誤
4. the act of retrieving something that was lost, stolen, damaged, or no longer in
the act of retrieving something that was lost, stolen, damaged, or no longer in use so that it can be restored to a usable state
The museum spent millions on the reclamation of paintings that were damaged in the flood.
pattern: reclamation of [valuable items]
Data reclamation from a broken hard drive takes experts weeks of careful work.
collocation: data reclamation
The reclamation of stolen artworks took the police more than ten years of international searching.
Salt reclamation from seawater is an important industry in countries that have little fresh water.
- recovery
more general and common; preferred for everyday use and for health/energy contexts
- retrieval
often used in computing and information contexts; more technical
- restoration
focuses on returning something to its original condition rather than just getting it back
- loss
the state of having something taken away or destroyed
- abandonment
giving up on something rather than reclaiming it
文法句型
reclamation + of + noun phrase (the thing being got back)
用法筆記
Often used in technical or specialized contexts (data reclamation, salt reclamation, art reclamation). For everyday loss, verbs like 'get back' or 'recover' are more natural. The 'of'-phrase is almost always required to specify what is being recovered.