resettlement: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
C1Formal, Technical, Academic
Quick answer
What does “resettlement” mean?
The action or process of settling someone in a new place, especially after being forced to leave their original home.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
The action or process of settling someone in a new place, especially after being forced to leave their original home.
Can refer to the organized relocation of people, communities, or refugees; also used in business contexts for transferring employees or operations to a new location.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant spelling or meaning differences. Both use the term identically in formal contexts.
Connotations
In both varieties, strongly associated with refugee crises, post-conflict reconstruction, and urban development projects.
Frequency
Slightly more frequent in British media due to historical colonial and Commonwealth migration contexts, but equally common in American academic/policy discourse.
Grammar
How to Use “resettlement” in a Sentence
resettlement of [people/community]resettlement in [location]resettlement from [origin] to [destination]resettlement following [event]Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “resettlement” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- The council plans to resettle fifty families in the new development.
- After the floods, efforts to resettle villagers are underway.
American English
- The agency helped resettle refugees across several states.
- The company will resettle its headquarters to a more tax-friendly city.
adverb
British English
- No standard adverbial form in common use.
American English
- No standard adverbial form in common use.
adjective
British English
- The resettlement grant helped the family buy new furniture.
- They attended a resettlement advisory meeting.
American English
- The resettlement process can take many months.
- She works for a resettlement nonprofit in Chicago.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Refers to corporate relocation of employees or departments, often as part of restructuring.
Academic
Used in sociology, geography, and political science to discuss migration, refugee studies, and urban planning.
Everyday
Rare in casual conversation; appears in news about refugees or disaster recovery.
Technical
Specific term in humanitarian aid, international law (UNHCR), and environmental impact assessments (e.g., dam projects).
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “resettlement”
Strong
Neutral
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “resettlement”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “resettlement”
- Misspelling as 'resetlement' (missing 't').
- Using interchangeably with 'immigration' (resettlement implies organized assistance).
- Confusing 'resettlement' (noun) with 'to resettle' (verb) in sentence structure.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Immigration is a broader term for moving to a new country. Resettlement specifically implies an organized, often assisted process, typically for refugees, displaced persons, or communities affected by development projects.
Yes, it can be voluntary (e.g., accepting a company's offer to relocate) or forced/involuntary (e.g., due to war, natural disaster, or government infrastructure projects). The term itself describes the process, not the voluntariness.
The main verb is 'to resettle' (resettled, resettling). It is a regular verb.
It is a mid-frequency word, common in formal, academic, journalistic, and humanitarian contexts, but rare in everyday casual conversation.
The action or process of settling someone in a new place, especially after being forced to leave their original home.
Resettlement is usually formal, technical, academic in register.
Resettlement: in British English it is pronounced /ˌriːˈset.əl.mənt/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˌriːˈset̬.əl.mənt/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “No common idioms specifically with 'resettlement'.”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: RE-SETTLE-MENT. You SETTLE (make a home) again (RE-) as part of an official process (-MENT).
Conceptual Metaphor
LIFE IS A JOURNEY (with a forced detour); COMMUNITY IS AN ORGANISM (that can be transplanted).
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'resettlement' LEAST likely to be used?