Batteries produce electricity from a chemical reaction. So to recharge a battery, we would have to be able to reverse the chemical reaction by applying an electric current. In truth most batteries use chemical reactions that could be reversed, but there are efficiency considerations that come into play. Rechargeable batteries make use of reactions that can be reversed easily, many times, without too much degradation of the battery materials. One-time-use batteries typically use reactions that could only be reversed and reused a couple of times before they would not work very well anymore.