Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

afresh

American  
[uh-fresh] / əˈfrɛʃ /

adverb

  1. anew; once more; again.

    to start afresh.
afresh British  
/ əˈfrɛʃ /

adverb

  1. once more; once again; anew

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of afresh

First recorded in 1500–10; a- 2 + fresh

Explanation

When you do something afresh, you start it again as if it's the first time. You might, for example, start afresh baking a new apple pie after burning the first one. When you see the adverb afresh, it's often following "start" or "begin." Doing something afresh is getting a fresh start, or a complete do-over. Your grandfather might start afresh with his new job as a goat farmer after a lifetime working as an accountant. Or you might start afresh with a classmate you used to argue with, determined to find a way to get along. In both examples, someone is approaching things in a brand new way.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing afresh

Holler of the Fireflies

Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The Villa Stuck reopened to the public in October following a $16 million renovation—the first in 20 years—that allows visitors to appreciate the artist’s gutsy genius afresh.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

I think you are right to look at moving to a new home and starting afresh.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 14, 2026

It is the only Slam missing from his resume and the 22-year-old will start afresh with a new coach after his shock split from Juan Carlos Ferrero, who mentored him since he was 15.

From Barron's • Dec. 31, 2025

As the darker evenings loom we're likely to spend more time inside making it a natural time to start looking at our homes afresh and to think about decluttering.

From BBC • Sep. 15, 2025

I lay still a while: the night-wind swept over the hill and over me, and died moaning in the distance; the rain fell fast, wetting me afresh to the skin.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.