[Ads-l] recycle as an intransitive verb

[Ben Zimmer]

On Mon, Apr 4, 2016 at 4:51 AM, Benjamin Barrett wrote:

> I just got into trouble with a client because Merriam-Webster (
> http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recycle) says that the
> intransitive uses of “recycle” do not include “recycle waste.” The Oxford
> Dictionary site (
> http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/recycle)
> and Wiktionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/recycle) agree.
>
> I have no trouble with saying “I don’t recycle” and the internet is filled
> with examples.


OED3 includes intransitive examples with that sense back to 1971, including
the old mantra, "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle."

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