accommodate

[ uh-kom-uh-deyt ]

verb (used with object)

, ac·com·mo·dat·ed, ac·com·mo·dat·ing.

1. 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

2. to provide suitably; supply (usually followed by with ):

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

3. to lend money to:

   Can you accommodate him, or are you short of cash?

4. to provide with a room and sometimes with food.
5. to furnish with accommodations, as food and lodgings.
6. to have or make room for:

   Will this elevator accommodate 10 people?

7. to make suitable or consistent; adapt:

   to accommodate oneself to circumstances.

   Synonyms: suit, fit

8. 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)

, ac·com·mo·dat·ed, ac·com·mo·dat·ing.

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

accommodate

/ əˈkɒməˌdeɪt /

verb

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

Derived Forms

• acˈcommoˌdative, adjective

Other Words From

• ac·com·mo·da·ble [uh, -, kom, -, uh, -d, uh, -b, uh, l], adjective
• non·ac·com·mo·da·ble adjective
• pre·ac·com·mo·date verb (used with object) preaccommodated preaccommodating
• re·ac·com·mo·date verb reaccommodated reaccommodating
• un·ac·com·mo·da·ble adjective
• un·der·ac·com·mo·dat·ed adjective
• well-ac·com·mo·dat·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of accommodate¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of accommodate¹

C16: from Latin accommodāre to make fit, from ad- to + commodus having the proper measure

Synonym Study

See oblige. See contain.

Example Sentences

Its CEO Elinor Eustace said sustainable funding was a "must" in order to accommodate everyone in need of end-of-life care.

From BBC

"I imagine the prices of tattoos are going to go up to accommodate this," said Kim Thomas, a tattoo artist in Newport.

From BBC

Reisman said she has had to turn down placement requests from the state because she couldn’t accommodate them.

From Salon

"The brain's cortical architecture can fit about 280 terabytes of information -- 32 years of high-definition video. Our genomes accommodate about one hour. This implies a 400,000-fold compression technology cannot yet match."

From Science Daily

The paper, "Biodiversity is not a luxury: Unpacking wealth and power to accommodate the complexity of urban biodiversity," is published open access in the journal Ecosystems.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• contain
• entertain
• hold
• rent
• shelter
• take in
• welcome