<p>Thermoresponsive hydrogels based on poly(<i>N</i>-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAm) often undergo syneresis upon heating, and thus become irrecoverable in shape. To overcome this limitation, we copolymerize tetra-armed PNIPAm precursor with tetra-armed poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) precursor. After incorporating the hydrophilic PEG components, the hydrogel samples exhibited recoverable swellability during repeated heating-cooling cycles, during which phase segregation occurred, and the water repelled from the PNIPAm-rich phase can be accommodated in the PEG-rich phase. As a result, recoverability relied on the swellability of the PEG-rich phase, which correlated quantitatively with the molar mass and concentration of the precursor solution. This study provides an effective protocol for the molecular design of stimuli-responsive hydrogels with a desired degree of shape recoverability.</p>