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

Palm oil output could remain under pressure from dry weather and wildfires, while low water levels could disrupt coal transportation and nickel production in near term, they reckon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026

"I reckon we're going to get flooded yet again," she said.

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026

But like it or not, he must learn to reckon with the heightened expectations and speculation that comes with simply being good at his current job.

From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026

"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

“How old you reckon Hosie is? He ain’t a real big boy, as I recollect. But he’s some older’n you, ain’t he?”

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns

As an ex-teacher, Jenner reckons she has no fears appearing before politicians in Cardiff Bay.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026

The Woodland Trust reckons there are only 39,000 of them left, while the Save Our Reds campaign thinks just 15,000 remain, including in conservation areas such as Formby on Merseyside.

From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026

If fully deployed, the capacity could add an estimated 450 million ringgit-500 million ringgit to annual profit, he reckons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

The outlook is supported by recovering RF demand and rapid growth in photonics revenue, which could double to about 200 million ringgit in FY 2027 as AI data-center demand rises, he reckons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

“Only time I’ve ever seen Dad as angry as Mum. Fred reckons his left buttock has never been the same since.”

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

Olsi reckoned it would probably start up again in the autumn, though, regardless of those survey results.

From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026

Combine these suspicions with his all-consuming grief and you can see why Swire is such a force to be reckoned with on his quest for a truth he believes has been denied to him.

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

Blue-collar workers globally have reckoned with growing levels of automation, from mechanized arms welding sheet metal to mixing paint.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Did you find yourself having an existential moment as Jeremy taking in what Carmy was wrestling with, or have you reckoned with it before?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026

For the infinite had already begun to gnaw at the roots of Western thought, thanks to Zeno of Elea, a philosopher reckoned by his contemporaries to be the most annoying man in the West.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

“It’s sort of a reckoning coming: Jet fuel’s up, diesel’s up, consumers are a bit squeezed,” Ferguson said.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026

Over the past week, a global reckoning about the risks of AI spread from the frontier labs of Silicon Valley to living rooms across America and the corridors of power in Washington and Beijing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

In the quieter moments, Malkovich lets us see Chris reckoning with a life spent doing his country’s dirty work.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Her memoir may therefore be less a political reckoning than a defence of belonging - an attempt to explain what the Nehru-Gandhi inheritance has meant to her, and why she believes it still matters.

From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026

This was a sentiment that I agreed with, particularly since I had not had a good night’s sleep the previous night—having been awoken at three a.m. and told that the day of reckoning had arrived.

From "Louisiana's Way Home" by Kate DiCamillo

Related Words

• calculate
• look upon
• take account of