Meaning & use
reconciliating
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“reconciliating” is a form of “reconcile”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
verbtransitive
The present participle of 'reconcile': making people friendly again after a disagreement, or making ideas or situations able to exist together.
Grammar: Used as a verb form; it takes an object, e.g. 'reconciliating the two sides'.
Patterns
- reconciliating someone with someone
- reconciliating something with something
She is reconciling her two best friends after their argument.
The manager is reconciling the different opinions in the team.
Reconciling work and family life can be difficult.
Word forms
| base form | reconcile |
|---|---|
| third person singular | reconciles |
| past tense | reconciled |
| past participle | reconciled |
| -ing form | reconciling |
Common combinations
- reconcile differences
- The two countries are trying to reconcile their differences.
- reconcile with
- He found it hard to reconcile his beliefs with his actions.
- reconcile oneself to
- She reconciled herself to the fact that she would never see him again.
- reconcile accounts
- The accountant spent hours reconciling the accounts.
Synonyms and how they differ
- reunite
- Focuses on bringing people together again, often physically; 'reconcile' emphasizes ending a disagreement.
- harmonize
- Used for making things work well together, especially ideas or systems; 'reconcile' is more about resolving conflict.
Opposites
Word family
- reconciliation noun
- The act of making people friendly again or making ideas compatible.
- reconcilable adjective
- Able to be made consistent or friendly again.
- irreconcilable adjective
- Impossible to make consistent or friendly again.
Commonly confused: reconciliating or reconcile? reconciliating or conciliation?
reconciliating vs reconcile
This is the base form; 'reconciling' is the -ing form. Use 'reconcile' for the infinitive or present tense (except third person singular).
reconciliating vs conciliation
A noun meaning the act of placating or pacifying; 'reconciliation' is the noun from 'reconcile'.
Practice
Which sentence uses the -ing form of 'reconcile' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The present continuous requires the -ing form: 'is reconciling'. The other options use the base form, third person singular, or past participle incorrectly.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “reconciliating”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.