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conciliate

verb
con·​cil·​i·​ate | \ kən-ˈsi-lē-ˌāt How to pronounce conciliate (audio) \
conciliated; conciliating

Definition of conciliate

transitive verb

1 : appease … urgently counseled conciliating the peasants …— William Taubman
2 : to gain (something, such as goodwill) by pleasing acts
3 : to make compatible : reconcile It is hard to conciliate the views of labor and management on this point.

intransitive verb

: to become friendly or agreeable
Other Words from conciliate Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about conciliate

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Other Words from conciliate

conciliation \ kən-​ˌsi-​lē-​ˈā-​shən How to pronounce conciliation (audio) \ noun
conciliative \ kən-​ˈsi-​lē-​ˌā-​tiv How to pronounce conciliative (audio) \ adjective
conciliator \ kən-​ˈsi-​lē-​ˌā-​tər How to pronounce conciliator (audio) \ noun

Synonyms & Antonyms for conciliate

Synonyms

accommodate, attune, conform, coordinate, harmonize, key, reconcile

Antonyms

disharmonize

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Choose the Right Synonym for conciliate

pacify, appease, placate, mollify, propitiate, conciliate mean to ease the anger or disturbance of. pacify suggests a soothing or calming. pacified by a sincere apology appease implies quieting insistent demands by making concessions. appease their territorial ambitions placate suggests changing resentment or bitterness to goodwill. a move to placate local opposition mollify implies soothing hurt feelings or rising anger. a speech that mollified the demonstrators propitiate implies averting anger or malevolence especially of a superior being. propitiated his parents by dressing up conciliate suggests ending an estrangement by persuasion, concession, or settling of differences. conciliating the belligerent nations

Did You Know?

A council is "an assembly or meeting for consultation, advice, or discussion," and it is often the task of a council to conciliate opposing views. It seems fitting, therefore, that the words "council" and "conciliate" both derive from the Latin word concilium, which means "assembly" or "council." "Conciliate" comes to us from the Latin conciliatus, the past participle of the verb "conciliare" (meaning "to assemble, unite, win over"), which in turn is from "concilium." ("Council," on the other hand, derives from the Anglo-French cunseil or "cuncile," from "concilium.") Other "concilium" descendants in English include "conciliar" ("of, relating to, or issued by a council") and the rare "conciliabule" ("a clandestine meeting especially of conspirators or rebels").

Examples of conciliate in a Sentence

The company's attempts to conciliate the strikers have failed. it will be hard to conciliate the views of labor and management regarding health benefits

Recent Examples on the Web

 Rather than jousting with citizen groups at zoning-board meetings, Mr. Traurig tried to conciliate them in advance. — James R. Hagerty, WSJ, "Robert Traurig Mastered Miami Zoning Process and Helped Create Big Law Firm," 27 July 2018 Trump’s determination to conciliate Putin can’t be dismissed as casual trolling or some idle attraction to a friendly face. — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Will Trump Be Meeting With His Counterpart — Or His Handler?," 8 July 2018 Bickering over cabin choices and roommates until the older children brought in the authorities, in the form of parents, to conciliate. — Oddur Thorisson, Condé Nast Traveler, "Traveling in Venice With Kids," 21 June 2018 Attorney General Jeff Sessions has proclaimed the end of Obama-era reforms which conciliated between civil-rights activists and police to yield a wave of law-enforcement reforms. — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Most Unpatriotic President Ever Says Kneeling NFL Players ‘Shouldn’t Be in the Country’," 24 May 2018 There are no complexities, no ambiguities, no conflicting views to consider or conciliate. — Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, "Why N.Y. Pols Aren’t World Class," 8 May 2018 On the left, many liberals still wanted to conciliate rather than to confront our wartime ally Stalin. — Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, "What Truman Can Teach Trump," 21 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'conciliate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of conciliate

1545, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

History and Etymology for conciliate

Latin conciliatus, past participle of conciliare to assemble, unite, win over, from concilium assembly, council — more at council

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More Definitions for conciliate

conciliate

verb
How to pronounce conciliate (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of conciliate

formal : to make (someone) more friendly or less angry

See the full definition for conciliate in the English Language Learners Dictionary

conciliate

verb
con·​cil·​i·​ate | \ kən-ˈsi-lē-ˌāt How to pronounce conciliate (audio) \
conciliated; conciliating

Kids Definition of conciliate

1 : to bring into agreement : reconcile It's hard to conciliate the stories of what happened.
2 : to gain or regain the goodwill or favor of She apologized to conciliate an angry friend.

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