conciliatory

American  

[kuhn-sil-ee-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] / kənˈsɪl i əˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

Also conciliative

adjective

1. tending to conciliate.

   a conciliatory manner; conciliatory comments.

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conciliatory British  

/ -trɪ, kənˈsɪljətərɪ, kənˈsɪljətɪv /

adjective

1. intended to placate or reconcile

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Other Word Forms

• conciliatorily adverb
• conciliatoriness noun
• nonconciliatory adjective
• unconciliative adjective
• unconciliatory adjective

Etymology

Origin of conciliatory

First recorded in 1570–80; conciliate + -ory ¹

Example Sentences

Leo has often been described as a more conciliatory and less confrontational figure than Francis, who clearly emerged from what might be called the center-left of the Latin American church.

From Salon • Apr. 5, 2026

Wall Street traders weren’t alone in advising against chasing the latest batch of conciliatory headlines.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

He backed off after a somewhat conciliatory phone call with Lurie, in which Trump said the mayor asked him “very nicely” to call off the deployment.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

And then on May 1, 2025, he lost, in a mostly conciliatory finding.

From Slate • Mar. 25, 2026

“Well, it apparendy makes some difference to Headquarters,” he answered in a conciliatory tone.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller