rejoin

verb

Etymology: From Middle English rejoynen, from Middle French rejoin- (stem of rejoindre, from re- (“again”) + joindre (“to join”)). By surface analysis, re- + join. Doublet of rejoinder.

1. To state in reply.

   “"Be careful what you do," rejoined another man's voice that I did not know, "lest someone see you digging, and scent us out."”

2. To answer to a reply.
3. To answer, as the defendant to the plaintiff's replication.
4. To re-insert a patent claim, typically after allowance of a patent application, applied to patent claims that had been withdrawn from examination under a restriction requirement, based on rejoinder.