indemnify
Americanverb (used with object)
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to compensate for damage or loss sustained, expense incurred, etc.
- Synonyms:
- repay, reimburse, recompense
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to guard or secure against anticipated loss; give security against (future damage or liability).
verb
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to secure against future loss, damage, or liability; give security for; insure
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to compensate for loss, injury, expense, etc; reimburse
Usage
What does indemnify mean? To indemnify is to insure someone against potential damages or loss or to compensate someone for damages or money spent. Insurance coverage indemnifies a person by insuring them for certain potential situations, such as damages to their property from natural disasters or accidents. Indemnify is commonly used in legal contracts to secure protection against being sued or held responsible for an accident. The noun form of indemnify is indemnity, which refers to such protection and is often used in phrases like indemnity clause. Example: The whole purpose of car insurance is to indemnify you in case you get into an accident—buying insurance after an accident happens won’t cover you.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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indemnifysimple
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indemnifiessimple
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have indemnifiedperfect
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has indemnifiedperfect
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am indemnifyingprogressive
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are indemnifyingprogressive
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is indemnifyingprogressive
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have been indemnifyingperfect progressive
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has been indemnifyingperfect progressive
Past
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indemnifiedsimple
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had indemnifiedperfect
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was indemnifyingprogressive
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were indemnifyingprogressive
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had been indemnifyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of indemnify
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin indemni(s) “without loss” ( see indemnity) + -fy
Explanation
To pay compensation for a loss, damages, or similar expense is to indemnify. "The insurance company indemnified its customers for their claims after the severe storm — one customer lost three cars, a row boat, and a golf cart." The verb indemnify also means to secure against future loss. The farmers bought insurance to indemnify themselves and their animals against catastrophic loss. The word indemnify comes from the Latin word indemnis, which means "to unhurt." The city wanted to shut down an old local landmark because they were afraid it no longer met modern safety standards, but local citizens wanted it to remain. In a compromise, the owners agreed to indemnify the city against possible loss and the landmark was allowed to remain.
Vocabulary lists containing indemnify
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "I"
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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:
Earlier this month, Mr Jeffries sued A&F after it refused to pay his criminal defence costs, arguing the brand had agreed to indemnify him for all claims arising out of his position.
From BBC ● Dec. 24, 2024
“We’re going to indemnify them against any prosecutions.”
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2024
What you end up doing with that knowledge, we hereby indemnify ourselves of, formally.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 14, 2024
“We are going to indemnify them, so they don’t lose their wife, their family, their pension and their job,” he said during a speech this month in New York.
From New York Times ● Dec. 21, 2023
And yes, there were precautions administrators took to indemnify themselves against all eventualities.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
The settlement indemnifies Uber from future disability claims concerning its wait fee system — but it’s far from the only disability claim facing the company.
From The Verge ● Jul. 18, 2022
“Section 230” is a reference to a 1996 federal law that broadly indemnifies tech platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Google for the actions of their users.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 29, 2020
The fund indemnifies drivers and compensates victims in road traffic accidents but strictly caps compensation for medical expenses and limits payouts for loss of earnings at 9% of Jackson’s annual income, according to court filings.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2020
The nonprofit organization worked the language into the paperwork on every grant agreement, and indemnifies the donors from the consequences of illegal actions.
From New York Times ● Sep. 27, 2019
Yes, that was it: he had assumed the black cap, that decent symbol which indemnifies the taker of a life; and might the Lord have mercy on my soul...
From Yet Again by Beerbohm, Max, Sir
Halls is seeking to be indemnified against Baldwin and the other crew members, as well as compensation for any damages he may be liable for if Mitchell wins her case.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 20, 2022
Britain's finance ministry said on Wednesday Bank of England intervention in the government bond market was needed to tackle "significant volatility" and market dysfunction, and any losses would be fully indemnified by the government.
From Reuters ● Sep. 28, 2022
It added that the plan would be fully indemnified by the Treasury and that the purchases would be "time limited".
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2022
The government also indemnified the doctors who administer the shot against lawsuits.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 1, 2021
Mr. Hullah, the then proprietor, being indemnified by the authorities, paid damages for his breach of contract, to avoid a suit which I at once commenced against him.
From A Few Words About the Devil And Other Biographical Sketches and Essays by Bradlaugh, Charles
The archdiocese “has obligations to some of those individuals which may include indemnifying legal fees for representation,” Archbishop William Lori said in a Nov. 22 statement.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 6, 2022
The fund covers all users of South African roads against injuries sustained or death in motor vehicle accidents, indemnifying those who cause the accident, as well as providing personal injury and death insurance to victims.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2020
There are aspects of urban exploration that leave me deeply uneasy, and that cannot be fended off by indemnifying gestures of self-awareness on the part of its practitioners.
From The New Yorker ● May 23, 2019
CBS had no comment on the issue of indemnifying ex-employees who signed nondisclosure agreements with nondisparagement clauses.
From New York Times ● Oct. 26, 2018
Frugality and Industry will go a great way toward indemnifying us.
From Benjamin Franklin; Self-Revealed, Volume II (of 2) A Biographical and Critical Study Based Mainly on his own Writings by Bruce, Wiliam Cabell
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.
