Synonyms

accommodate

American

[uh-kom-uh-dayt] / əˈkɒm əˌdeɪt /

verb (used with object)

to do a kindness or a favor to; oblige.

to accommodate a friend by helping him move to a new apartment.

Synonyms:

abet, help, assist, aid, serve

Antonyms:

inconvenience
to provide suitably; supply (usually followed bywith ).

The officials were accommodated with seats toward the front of the room.
to lend money to.

Can you accommodate him, or are you short of cash?
to provide with a room and sometimes with food.
to furnish with accommodations, as food and lodgings.
to have or make room for.

Will this elevator accommodate 10 people?
to make suitable or consistent; adapt.

to accommodate oneself to circumstances.

Synonyms:

suit, fit
to bring into harmony or make adjustments or allowances for.

to accommodate differences;
to accommodate your busy schedule.

Synonyms:

harmonize, compose

verb (used without object)

to become adjusted or adapted.
to become reconciled; agree.

accommodate British

/ əˈkɒməˌdeɪt /

verb

(tr) to supply or provide, esp with lodging or board and lodging
(tr) to oblige or do a favour for
to adjust or become adjusted; adapt
(tr) to bring into harmony; reconcile
(tr) to allow room for; contain
(tr) to lend money to, esp on a temporary basis until a formal loan has been arranged

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does accommodate mean? To accommodate someone is to do them a favor or meet their needs or wants in some way, as in You don’t have to accommodate everyone all the time—sometimes the answer should be no. To accommodate a request is to honor it—to do what has been asked, as in They were kind enough to accommodate my special requests. The adjective accommodating means eager or willing to help or please in this way. Accommodate can also mean to make or have room for, as in This bus can accommodate up to 50 passengers. Similarly, accommodate can mean to provide someone with a place to stay, as in Unfortunately the hotel was not able to accommodate us—all the rooms were reserved. The related term accommodation is often used in this context, especially in relation to hotels rooms or other temporary lodging. In this case, it is often used in the plural, as in What are the accommodations like?Accommodation is also commonly used in a general way referring to the act of accommodating. This can be used in any of the senses of the word. Example: We’ve extended our hours to better accommodate our customers.

Synonym Usage

See oblige. See contain.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of accommodate

First recorded in 1515–25; from Latin accommodātus “adjusted,” past participle of accommodāre “to adjust,” from ac- ac- + commod(us) “convenient, fitting, suitable” ( see com-, mode)

Explanation

If you accommodate, you are making an adjustment to suit a particular purpose. If you accommodate your brother's demand for the attic room, then you give in and let him take over that space. Accommodate entered English in the mid-16th century from the Latin word accommodat-, meaning "made fitting." Whether it refers to changing something to suit someone's wishes or providing someone with something he needs, accommodate typically involves making something fit. You might change your lunch plans, for example, to accommodate your best friend's schedule. Accommodate can also refer to providing housing or having enough space for something. You might need to open up the extra bedroom to accommodate your out-of-town guests.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing accommodate

The Call of the Wild

Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!

Wonder

Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!

The Breadwinner

Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!

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.

See Examples For:

accommodate accommodates accommodated accommodating

The home’s appeal extends beyond the main residence, with two additional detached structures that could accommodate a variety of uses.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026

"I can't describe how different it felt and it was a real shock to me to understand this is how normal people function, and not to accommodate pain and fatigue into everyday life."

From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026

You’re still having to learn a vast repertoire of another band and accommodate your style as a working professional and acclaimed musician of many years into someone else’s.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

Those are huge amounts of new power to expect electric operators to provide, and data-center developers to accommodate.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

Everything otherwise was designed to accommodate our well-being as students.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

There is also a theater room, multiple bars, two garages, and a motor court that accommodates 20 cars.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026

These days, she fields daily requests from brides seeking accelerated turnarounds—which Harris accommodates when she can.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 25, 2026

Its legal framework already accommodates this approach by distinguishing between several types of property, including small homes, large apartment buildings, and commercial property.

From Barron's ● Apr. 17, 2026

Addiewell, the only privately run jail in Scotland, can hold just short of 800 prisoners and accommodates convicted adult male prisoners and men on remand.

From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026

Sometimes we go out to a restaurant in the Atlanta Underground, or see a film at a theater that accommodates his wheelchair.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

She accommodated him at the expense of her own writing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Affected passengers were being accommodated on later flights.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

By December 2024, about 20,000 people were being accommodated by it.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

Iran responded by firing drones and ballistic missiles at Bahrain and Kuwait, which host U.S. bases and have accommodated the U.S. military throughout the war, according to a senior U.S. official.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026

We demanded to be accommodated together, and were given all sorts of absurd explanations why this was impossible.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

This has the added benefit of accommodating those who don’t want to drink alcohol.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026

Bass believes city planners should work collaboratively with neighborhoods on ways of accommodating growth.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

James Madison’s notes seemed to confirm what Garrisonians believed: Whatever euphemisms the Constitution employed, some framers knew they were accommodating slavery.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

Muenster is less assertive but more accommodating: its mild butteriness stands beside the sauce without competing, and it softens agreeably in summer warmth without becoming stringy or oily.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026

The judge and the prosecutor were suddenly generous and accommodating.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023