'reinitialize' originates from the prefix 're-' meaning 'again' and the word 'initialize', which comes from 'initial' meaning 'beginning'.

'initialize' changed from the Latin word 'initialis' meaning 'pertaining to a beginning' and eventually became the modern English word 'initialize'.

Initially, it meant 'to set to a starting position again', and this meaning has largely remained the same in modern usage.