compensate
KOM-puhn-seyt
/ˈkɒmpɛnseɪt/
To give someone something, typically money, in recognition of loss, suffering, or injury.
Goes beyond a simple refund; it implies making up for an inconvenience or a bad experience.
The story behind the word. From the Latin 'compensare,' meaning to weigh one thing against another. It’s like a scale: the store puts something in your 'pan' to balance out the trouble they caused you.
Word relationships
- make amends: Make amends is more about fixing a relationship; compensate is more about financial or material balance.
Commonly confused with
- remunerate: Remunerate is to pay someone for work done; compensate is to pay someone for a loss or trouble.
Word family
- compensation (noun): something given to make up for a loss
Collocations
- fully compensate
- compensate for losses
- seek compensation
Example sentences
- "The airline offered us meal vouchers to compensate for the six-hour delay." Airline delay.
Memory hook
COMPENSATE is like a COMpass—it helps put you back on the right path after a loss. Balance the scales.
When not to use
Do not use for a simple even exchange of goods.
Fun facts
- In physics, 'compensation' refers to a counter-effect that neutralizes another force.
Related words
Also appears in
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