reckon

American  

[rek-uhn] / ˈrɛk ən /

verb (used with object)

• reckons,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reckoned,
  past participle,  past
• reckoning
  present participle

1. to count, compute, or calculate, as in number or amount.

   Synonyms:

   enumerate

2. to esteem or consider; regard as.

   to be reckoned an authority in the field.

   Synonyms:

   judge, estimate, deem, account

3. Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. to think or suppose.

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verb (used without object)

• reckons,
  present (3rd person singular)
• reckoned,
  past participle,  past
• reckoning
  present participle

1. to count; make a computation or calculation.

2. to settle accounts, as with a person (often followed byup ).

3. to count, depend, or rely, as in expectation (often followed byon ).

4. Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. to think or suppose.

verb phrase

1. reckon with

   1. to include in consideration or planning; anticipate.

      He hadn't reckoned with so many obstacles.

   2. to deal with.

      I have to reckon with many problems every day.

reckon British  

/ ˈrɛkən /

verb

1. to calculate or ascertain by calculating; compute

2. (tr) to include; count as part of a set or class

   I reckon her with the angels

3. (usually passive) to consider or regard

   he is reckoned clever

4. (when tr, takes a clause as object) to think or suppose; be of the opinion

   I reckon you don't know where to go next

5. to settle accounts (with)

6. (intr; foll by with or without) to take into account or fail to take into account

   the bully reckoned without John's big brother

7. (intr; foll by on or upon) to rely or depend

   I reckon on your support in this crisis

8. slang (tr) to regard as good

   I don't reckon your chances of success

9. informal (tr) to have a high opinion of

   she was sensitive to bad reviews, even from people she did not reckon

10. of considerable importance or influence

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reckon Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing reckon

• force to be reckoned with

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• outreckon
  verb (used with object)
• prereckon
  verb (used with object)
• underreckon
  verb (used with object)
• unreckon
  verb (used with object)
• reckonable
  adjective
• unreckonable
  adjective
• unreckoned
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• reckoning
  present
• reckoned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• reckon
  simple
• reckons
  simple
• have reckoned
  perfect
• has reckoned
  perfect
• am reckoning
  progressive
• are reckoning
  progressive
• is reckoning
  progressive
• have been reckoning
  perfect progressive
• has been reckoning
  perfect progressive

Past

• reckoned
  simple
• had reckoned
  perfect
• was reckoning
  progressive
• were reckoning
  progressive
• had been reckoning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will reckon
  simple
• will have reckoned
  perfect
• will be reckoning
  progressive
• will have been reckoning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of reckon

First recorded before 1000; Middle English rekenen, Old English gerecenian “to report, pay”; cognate with German rechnen “to compute”

Explanation

Reckon means "guess" or "imagine," and is often used by rural types in Hollywood movies who say things like "I reckon I'll be moseyin' on." Reckon also means "suppose" or "think," as in "I reckon he's put his nose where it don't belong one too many times." If reckon sounds odd, that’s because it's mostly gone out of style. When used to talk about prediction, it's a little more common, as in "Who do you reckon is going to win the Super Bowl?" Still, it sounds a little old-fashioned. Many people use the word just for fun. Saying "I reckon" sounds more humorous than "Yes."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

reckon reckons reckoned reckoning

"I said: 'Do you reckon they will be able to do it?' Within five minutes he brought it back up and it was done. It's really nice."

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026

When Lestat is made to reckon with what’s presented as “failures” in both his mortal and immortal lives, he can’t quite own up to being a true monster, because that’s not what he really is.

From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026

Now he has to reckon with what he’s done.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

There is likely to be a natural recovery path with sequential improvements from 3Q to 4Q, they reckon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026

I reckon the bride thought that with the parlor windows shut, nobody could hear it.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns

Overly glib or sarcastic messages can get you into trouble, even if they are funny, reckons Paul Fitzsimmons, head of sales and marketing at law firm Wilford Smith.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

Halliday thinks the squad "shouldn't be that imbalanced this late into the transfer window" and reckons they need "three centre-halves, one left-back, two, arguably, three wingers".

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

Players with significant exposure to traditional end markets such as computers and smartphones may face a more challenging environment due to rising memory costs, he reckons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

But it demonstrates the mounting interest the industry is showing in secondhand clothing, as fashion reckons with pressure to lower its environmental impact.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026

“Dumbledore reckons Voldemort wanted Slughorn on his side,” said Harry.

From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling

When Bessent helped George Soros break the pound on “Black Wednesday” in 1992, he reckoned that the country’s floating-rate mortgages made it politically painful for Britain to raise interest rates to prop it up.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

Over the past two decades, employers have reckoned with the challenges parents face in balancing childcare with work, with about 46% offering paid parental leave, according to the Society for Human Resource Management.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026

To the outside world, it was to signal that Russia was no longer weak but a power to be reckoned with.

From BBC ● May 30, 2026

Speaking to The Times about the tune, Diamond reckoned he “said more in less words than in any other song I’ve ever written.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2026

And this time Cluny reckoned that he had hit upon a foolproof plan!

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques

Poolside’s Thursday letter referenced a failed fundraising effort in 2025 that caused a reckoning for the startup and indirectly led to the deal with Nvidia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026

Most notably, “Not Built in a Day” lacks any deep reckoning with the question of why the Romans built such an exceptionally vast and enduring slave system.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

The case could be "the beginning of a broader reckoning" for Meta, Nora Freeman Engstrom told AFP via email.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

That narrative - mostly told through lavish video interludes - is about reckoning and reconciliation.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

By his reckoning, the department would drop from first in the nation to twelfth.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Related Words

• calculate
• look upon
• take account of