# compensate

Pronunciation: say "KOM-puhn-sayt" US /ˈkɑm.pənˌseɪt/, UK /ˈkɒm.pən.seɪt/; AUS say "KOM-pen-sayt" /ˈkɔm.penˌsæɪt/

## Verb

1. To give someone money or another reward in return for their work or for something else they have provided.
   - Simple: To pay someone money for work they did or for something they gave you.
   - _The firm agreed to compensate employees for unused vacation days._
   - _Volunteers were compensated with meal vouchers rather than cash._
2. To make up for something, or to offset and balance one thing against another so that things become even.
   - Simple: To make up for something missing or wrong by adding something else.
   - _Higher wages can compensate for the long commute._
   - _Extra rest on the weekend rarely compensates for sleep lost during the week._
3. To adjust or adapt to a change, especially a harm or loss.
   - Simple: To change the way you act to deal with a loss or problem.
   - _Drivers compensate for poor visibility by slowing down and increasing their following distance._
   - _When one kidney fails, the other often compensates by working harder._
4. To do something good in response to something bad that has happened, making up for it.
   - Simple: To do something good to make up for something bad that happened.
   - _She worked overtime to compensate for the days she had missed._
   - _The airline gave each passenger a voucher to compensate for the long delay._

## Origin

Borrowed from Latin compēnsātus, the perfect passive participle of compensō ("to weigh one thing against another, to balance, to make good"), with the verb-forming suffix -ate.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/compensate (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).