solatium
Americannoun
plural
solatia-
something given in compensation for inconvenience, loss, injury, or the like; recompense.
-
Law. damages awarded to a plaintiff as compensation for personal suffering or grief arising from an injury.
noun
Etymology
Origin of solatium
1810–20; < Medieval Latin sōlātium, variant spelling of sōlācium, Latin: solace
Explanation
A solatium is compensation given to comfort someone who has suffered a loss or injury due to someone else's actions. In court, solatium is a sum of money awarded to a plaintiff for pain and suffering. The word solatium is borrowed from Latin, where the word means solace, "comfort offered to or felt by someone who is disappointed or miserable." A grieving person may "take solatium in" — feel comforted by — the knowledge that a deceased loved one lived a joyful life. In a legal situation, a judge or jury may order that a solatium (usually money) be paid by a person or company who caused harm to the person or people who suffered from it.
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.
Synonyms: amends, restitution, redress, compensation, recompense, damages, solatium, repayment, atonement, indemnification, indemnity.
From Washington Times • Nov. 12, 2021
His reference to a "solatium" puzzled me, but it did not seem anything of consequence.
From The Yeoman Adventurer by Gough, George W.
Strong interest was made in favour of mercy, but the College deprived him of his Fellowship, granting him, not too consistently, a solatium of £300.
From A History of Nineteenth Century Literature (1780-1895) by Saintsbury, George
A solatium was also expected on his release from gaol.
From The Diary of a Resurrectionist, 1811-1812 To Which Are Added an Account of the Resurrection Men in London and a Short History of the Passing of the Anatomy Act by Bailey, James Blake
Both acres and solatium shall be mine in any event.
From The Yeoman Adventurer by Gough, George W.
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.
