recompense

See also: récompense, récompensé, and recompensé

English

Alternative forms

• recompence (obsolete)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌɹɛkəmˈpɛns/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛns

Etymology 1

From Middle English recompense, borrowed from Old French recompense or Medieval Latin recompensa.

Noun

recompense (countable and uncountable, plural recompenses)

1. An equivalent returned for anything given, done, or suffered; compensation; reward; amends; requital.
2. That which compensates for an injury, or other type of harm or damage.
   • 1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 23:

     O let my books be then the eloquence
     And dumb presagers of my speaking breast,
     Who plead for love and look for recompense
     More than that tongue that more hath more express'd.

   He offered money as recompense for the damage, but what the injured party wanted was an apology.

Synonyms

• meed
• payback
• recompence
• restitution

Related terms

• compensate
• recompensate

Translations

that which compensates for a harm done

• Arabic: مُكَافَأَة‎ f (mukāfaʾa), بَدَل‎ (ar) m (badal)
• Bengali: জাযা (bn) (jaza), বদলা (bn) (bôdla), এনাম (bn) (enam)
• Bulgarian: обезщетение (bg) n (obezštetenie), компенсация (bg) f (kompensacija)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Czech: odškodnění n, náhrada (cs) f
• Egyptian: (ḏbꜣw m)
• Finnish: korvaus (fi), vahingonkorvaus
• French: récompense (fr) f
• German: Entschädigung (de) f
• Gothic: 𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌰𐌻𐌰𐌿𐌽𐌹 n (andalauni), 𐌼𐌹𐌶𐌳𐍉 f (mizdō)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἀμοιβή f (amoibḗ)

• Icelandic: bætur f pl, þóknun f
• Maori: whakaea, utunga whakaea
• Middle English: quytaunce, warisoun
• Norwegian: erstatning, vederlag
• Polish: rekompensata (pl) f
• Portuguese: compensação (pt) f
• Russian: компенса́ция (ru) f (kompensácija), возмеще́ние (ru) n (vozmeščénije) (убы́тков (ubýtkov), поте́рь (potérʹ), etc.)
• Scottish Gaelic: ath-dhìoladh m
• Slovak: odškodnenie n, náhrada f
• Spanish: recompensa (es) f
• Turkish: mukafat, ödül (tr), bedel (tr)
• Yiddish: גוטמאַכונג‎ f (gutmakhung), ווידערגוטמאַכונג‎ f (vidergutmakhung)

Etymology 2

From Middle English recompensen, borrowed from Old French recompenser, from Late Latin recompensare, from Latin re- (“again”) + compensare (“to balance out”).

Verb

recompense (third-person singular simple present recompenses, present participle recompensing, simple past and past participle recompensed)

1. To reward or repay (someone) for something done, given etc.
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, IV.ii:

     She in regard thereof him recompenst / With golden words, and goodly countenance, / And such fond fauours sparingly dispenst […]

   • c. 1598–1600, William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act II, scene iii]:

     He cannot recompense me better.

2. To give compensation for an injury, or other type of harm or damage.

   The judge ordered the defendant to recompense the plaintiff by paying $100.

3. (transitive) To give (something) in return; to pay back; to pay, as something earned or deserved.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Romans 12:17:

     Recompense to no man evil for evil.

Synonyms

• recompensate

Translations

to reward or repay (someone) for something done, given etc.

• Bulgarian: възнаграждавам (bg) (vǎznagraždavam), отплащам се (otplaštam se)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Esperanto: premio (eo)
• Finnish: korvata (fi)
• Polish: odwdzięczyć się
• Portuguese: recompensar (pt)
• Russian: компенсировать (ru) impf or pf (kompensirovatʹ), возмещать (ru) impf (vozmeščatʹ), возместить (ru) pf (vozmestitʹ), отплатить (ru) pf (otplatitʹ)
• Spanish: recompensar (es)

to give compensation

• Bulgarian: компенсирам (bg) (kompensiram), обезщетявам (bg) (obezštetjavam)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 賠償 (zh) (péicháng)

• Finnish: korvata (fi)
• French: récompenser (fr)
• German: entschädigen (de)
• Icelandic: launa, borga bætur
• Ido: rekompensar (io)
• Norwegian: erstatte (no), gjengjelde
• Polish: zrekompensować pf
• Portuguese: compensar (pt)
• Russian: компенси́ровать (ru) impf (kompensírovatʹ), возмеща́ть (ru) impf (vozmeščátʹ), возмести́ть (ru) pf (vozmestítʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: dìol
• Spanish: compensar (es)

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Old French

Etymology

From recompenser.

Noun

recompense f (oblique plural recompenses, nominative singular recompense, nominative plural recompenses)

1. recompense; compensation

Descendants

• English: recompense

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Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁe.kõˈpẽ.si/ [he.kõˈpẽ.si]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁe.kõˈpẽ.si/ [he.kõˈpẽ.si]
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /ʁe.kõˈpẽ.si/ [χe.kõˈpẽ.si]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ʁe.kõˈpẽ.se/ [he.kõˈpẽ.se]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ʁɨ.kõˈpẽ.s(ɨ)/

Verb

recompense

1. inflection of recompensar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

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Spanish

Verb

recompense

1. inflection of recompensar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative