reconcile
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to cause (a person) to accept or be resigned to something not desired.
He was reconciled to his fate.
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to win over to friendliness; cause to become amicable.
to reconcile hostile persons.
- Synonyms:
- placate, propitiate, pacify
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to compose or settle (a quarrel, dispute, etc.).
- Antonyms:
- anger
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to bring into agreement or harmony; make compatible or consistent.
to reconcile differing statements;
to reconcile accounts.
- Synonyms:
- harmonize
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to reconsecrate (a desecrated church, cemetery, etc.).
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to restore (an excommunicate or penitent) to communion in a church.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to make (oneself or another) no longer opposed; cause to acquiesce in something unpleasant
she reconciled herself to poverty
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to become friendly with (someone) after estrangement or to re-establish friendly relations between (two or more people)
-
to settle (a quarrel or difference)
-
to make (two apparently conflicting things) compatible or consistent with each other
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to reconsecrate (a desecrated church, etc)
Usage
What does reconcile mean? Reconcile means to make amends, come to a truce, or settle a dispute.Reconcile can also mean to make things compatible or consistent with each other. This sense of the word is especially used when discussing two things that cannot be reconciled, such as two contrasting beliefs.Another sense of the word means to cause to accept a negative situation or become resigned to it, as in I am reconciled to my fate of never being able to afford my dream house. The noun form of reconcile is reconciliation, which refers to the process of reconciling. It’s also the name of a Catholic sacrament involving the confession of sin.Example: After years of not speaking to each other, the two finally sat down and reconciled.
Other Word Forms
- prereconcile verb (used with object)
- prereconcilement noun
- quasi-reconciled adjective
- reconcilement noun
- reconciler noun
- reconciliation noun
- reconciliatory adjective
- reconcilingly adverb
- unreconciled adjective
- unreconciling adjective
Etymology
Origin of reconcile
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English reconcilen, from Latin reconciliāre “to make good again, repair,” equivalent to re- re- + conciliāre “to bring together” ( conciliate )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In one case, the camp of democracies will emerge strengthened, morally rearmed, reconciled with the idea that force can sometimes be placed in the service of law rather than opposed to it.
There was no explanation of how he reconciled taking part in the war with his reluctance to kill.
From BBC
Driven to the edge of her mind with grief, Ann reconciles her misery with a vow of celibacy.
From Salon
As spring turned to summer, Mark Carney led Canada's Liberal Party to an unlikely victory, Prince Harry told the BBC he wanted to reconcile with the Royal Family, and David Beckham got a knighthood.
From BBC
“Even well-meaning clinicians may inadvertently contribute to the pain of the estranged patient by encouraging them to reconcile when it may not actually be safe to do so,” the APA adds.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
