compensatory

American  

[kuhm-pen-suh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] / kəmˈpɛn səˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

Also compensative

adjective

1. serving to compensate, as for loss, lack, or injury.

2. countercyclical.

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Other Word Forms

• noncompensative
  adjective
• noncompensatory
  adjective
• recompensatory
  adjective
• subcompensative
  adjective
• subcompensatory
  adjective
• uncompensative
  adjective
• uncompensatory
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of compensatory

First recorded in 1595–1605; compensate + -ory ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

compensatory

When one Indiana walking club formerly using the hot-girl designation rebranded as “Hotwalk Indy,” Lind filed for compensatory damages.

From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026

She is requesting that the arbitration order be lifted, the arbitration process halted and her severance agreement voided, and asks for compensatory damages to cover lost book sales and speaking fees.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

He has demanded both compensatory damages to redress his own harms as well as punitive damages “to deter future unconstitutional conduct.”

From Slate ● Apr. 15, 2026

The judges found in the case of three restraints, force used was "not reasonable in all the circumstances" and that £2,000 in compensatory damages for each of them awarded in 2024 remained warranted.

From BBC ● Apr. 6, 2026

Still others projected their hurts and longings into more naive and mundane forms—blues, jazz, swing—and, without intellectual guidance, tried to build up a compensatory nourishment for themselves.

From "Native Son" by Richard Wright