reckoning
Americannoun
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count; computation; calculation.
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the settlement of accounts, as between two companies.
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a statement of an amount due; bill.
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an accounting, as for things received or done.
- Synonyms:
- retribution, judgment
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an appraisal or judgment.
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Navigation. dead reckoning.
noun
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the act of counting or calculating
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settlement of an account or bill
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a bill or account
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retribution for one's actions (esp in the phrase day of reckoning )
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nautical short for dead reckoning
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of reckoning
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English; reckon + -ing 1
Explanation
A reckoning is a calculation or number you estimate. You might say, "By my reckoning, there are now seventeen kids in the bouncy house, which might be a few too many." The act of counting or tallying can be called a reckoning, and so can a person's opinion on something. You could describe an ancient astronomer's reckoning that the Earth was at the center of the universe or your own reckoning that guests should never stay more than three days. And if you and your estranged sister have a reckoning, it means you finally get together and hold each other accountable for past actions.
Vocabulary lists containing reckoning
Fahrenheit 451
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The Cay
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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.
Aaron Sorkin, who wrote the previous film, is in the director's chair for The Social Reckoning, with an impressive cast including Mikey Madison, Wunmi Mosaku and Jeremy Strong as Mark Zuckerberg.
From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026
Appeared in the October 14, 2025, print edition as 'A Reckoning for Racial Gerrymanders'.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 13, 2025
The long-struggling Paramount has been hoping to get bought out for a while now—preferably by the production giant Skydance Media, known for IP blockbusters like Top Gun: Maverick and Mission Impossible—The Final Reckoning.
From Slate • Jul. 3, 2025
Some months after the events of 2023’s “Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One,” the all-knowing, oracular artificial intelligence program called the Entity has all but taken the world into its digital grasp.
From Salon • May 24, 2025
Reckoning the little table bearing the lamp, and a pair of easy-chairs, that is a ready inventory.
From Anthony Lyveden by Yates, Dornford
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.
