re-form
reform
noun[ C or U ]
uk /rɪˈfɔːm/ us /rɪˈfɔːrm/
C2
an improvement, especially in a person's behaviour or in the structure of something: （尤指人的行为或事物构造方面的）改革，改进，改造，改良
Some reforms of/to the system will be necessary.有必要对该制度进行一些改革。
The education system was crying out for reform.教育制度急需改革。
Political reform and economic liberalization don't always go together.政治改革和经济自由化并不总是同时进行的。
An avowed traditionalist, he is against reform of any kind.他公开宣称自己是个崇尚传统的人，反对任何形式的改革。
The education system in Britain was crying out for reform.
The reform process was put in train in 1985, by the Liberal government.
The political reforms have led to major structural changes in the economy.政治改革导致了经济结构的重大变化。

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Becoming better
a step upidiom
alive
back on your feetidiom
bloom
blossom
blossom into something
bounce
by/in leaps and boundsidiom
come aliveidiom
heal
make a man (out) of someoneidiom
marginal
mend
mend your waysidiom
move on to bigger/better thingsidiom
rally
shape up or ship out!idiom
sharpen (something) up
sharpen up your actidiom
step

reform | American Dictionary

reform
verb[ I/T ]
us/rɪˈfɔrm/
social studies
to become better, or to make something better by making corrections or removing any faults:
[ T ]As governor, he reformed election procedures.
[ I ]She insists that she has finally reformed.

reform

noun[ C/U ]us/rɪˈfɔrm/
[ U ]The administration is proposing welfare reform.

reformation

noun[ C/U ]us/ˌref·ərˈmeɪ·ʃən/
[ U ]reformation of the health care system

reformed

adjectiveus/rɪˈfɔrmd/
I’m a reformed guy – I eat a low-fat diet and exercise every day.

reform | Business English

reform
noun[ C or U ]
uk /rɪˈfɔːm/us
an improvement or set of improvements made to a system, law, organization, etc. in order to make it more modern or effective:
reform of sthEssential reform of the banking sector is under way.
reforms in sthHe has called for reforms in the retirement system for years.
banking/economic/tax reformCorporate tax reform has left companies uncertain about future tax bills.
Market reforms have opened the doors to greater competition.
fundamental/major/radical reforms
reform
verb[ T ]
uk /rɪˈfɔːm/us
to make an improvement to a system, a law, an organization, etc., in order to make it more modern or effective:
reform the economy/the tax system, etc.
Corporation tax will be reformed to raise more revenue.

Examples of reform

reform
However, rural reform has not abolished such ruralism but replaced it with its own version.
The politically popular fertilizer subsidies are generally disappointing and should be replaced by market-smart grants or by institutional reforms.
They attribute this result to certain reforms of the party's nominating process.
It fails to demonstrate how identity constrains paths to social reform.
The paradox is that welfare reform reduces the scale of government in one sense but expands it in another.
The prevailing dynamic of party clientelism has remained untouched, limiting the prospects for effective, far-reaching reform.
They were mutually dedicated to reforming institutions and removing privileges that they regarded as impediments to growth and stability.
Some advocates of reform stressed the desirability of adding new subjects to the curriculum, including modern sciences.
Technical regulation and enforcement may have actually declined in effectiveness until recent reforms were implemented.
Despite the variety of systems, the objectives guiding these reforms have been rather similar.
The system's popularity among voters is so great, that many perceive program reform as tantamount to touching the ' ' third rail ' ' of politics.
Structural reforms, however, take decades before their full effects are felt.
Most of the major structural reforms have been passed with the non-socialist opposition.
They include structural adjustment reforms, road sector reform, banking sector reform, agricultural sector reform, land sector reform, and tax reform.
Given that local farmers' response to the first two phases of reform had been characterised by a growing sense of ambivalence this seemed unlikely.
See all examples of reform
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations withreform

reform

These are words often used in combination with reform.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

administrative reform
The era of budget deficit and administrativereform was over.
agrarian reform
Agrarianreform has been blocked.
ambitious reform
This is a coherent and ambitiousreform.
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