compromise
[noun]
Synonyms:
- give-and-take, accommodation, adjustment, agreement, concession, settlement, trade-off
[verb]
Synonyms:
- meet halfway, adjust, agree, concede, give and take, go fifty-fifty (informal), settle, strike a balance
- dishonour, discredit, embarrass, expose, jeopardize, prejudice, weaken

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Related Idioms: happy medium, cook one's goose, play havoc (or hob) with, settle one's hash
Related Words: golden mean, mean, middle ground, middle way, agreement, compact, contract, pact, arrangement, bargain, understanding, blast, blight, mar, queer, ruin, spoil

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English Thesaurus: compromise, meet somebody halfway, make concession

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. com‧pro‧mise¹ /ˈkɒmprəmaɪz $ ˈkɑːm-/ noun
[Date: 1400-1500; Language: French; Origin: compromis, from Latin compromissum 'joint promise', from compromittere, from com- ( ⇒ COM-) + promittere (, promise²)]

1. [uncountable and countable] an agreement that is achieved after everyone involved accepts less than what they wanted at first, or the act of making this agreement:
Compromise is an inevitable part of marriage.
To stop the argument they decided on a compromise.
compromise with
Fresh attempts at compromise with the legislature were also on the agenda.
compromise between
a compromise between government and opposition
If moderates fail to reach a compromise, the extremists will dominate the agenda.
Be prepared to make compromises.

2. [countable] a solution to a problem in which two things or situations are changed slightly so that they can exist together
compromise between
a happy compromise between the needs of family and work

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. compromise² verb

1. [intransitive] to reach an agreement in which everyone involved accepts less than what they wanted at first:
She admitted that she was unable to compromise.
compromise with
His workmates demanded that he never compromise with the bosses.
compromise on
The new regime was prepared to compromise on the oil dispute.

2. [transitive] to do something which is against your principles and which therefore seems dishonest or shameful
compromise your principles/standards/integrity etc
As soon as you compromise your principles you are lost.
compromise yourself
She had already compromised herself by accepting his invitation.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

compromise
noun
ADJ. acceptable, fair, good, happy, honourable, possible, pragmatic, reasonable, sensible, suitable | ideal | muddled, uneasy, unsatisfactory After months of negotiations, they have reached an uneasy compromise.
inevitable, necessary
VERB + COMPROMISE agree on, arrive at, come to, find, make, reach, work out I'm not making any more compromises. They're still trying to work out an acceptable compromise.
look for, seek It is best to try to seek a compromise rather than a perfect solution.
offer, suggest After much discussion, she offered a compromise.
accept | reject
COMPROMISE + NOUN agreement, deal, formula, proposal, resolution, solution | candidate He might be an attractive compromise candidate if both sides' first choices are rejected.
PREP. ~ between It was a fair compromise between the two sides.
~ on/over They came to a compromise over the exact amount to be paid.
~ with There could be no compromise with the nationalists.
 ⇒ Special page at MEETING

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

compromise
verb
I. in order to reach agreement
VERB + COMPROMISE be prepared to, be ready to | refuse to He wanted his own way and refused to compromise.
PREP. on Unions and management seem ready to compromise on the level of the pay increase.
with They debated whether to compromise with the opposition parties.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

compromise
II. damage/put in danger
ADV. seriously The affair seriously compromised the party's prospects of electoral success.
VERB + COMPROMISE be prepared to, be ready to | refuse to
PREP. on We are not prepared to compromise on safety standards.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

compromise

reach a compromise
After a bitter political fight, a compromise was finally reached.
come to/arrive at a compromise
The negotiations took place and they arrived at a compromise.
accept/agree on a compromise
It would be advantageous for both countries to accept a compromise.
find/work out a compromise
A temporary compromise was found.
seek a compromise
Both Democrats and Republicans are seeking a compromise on the issue.
make a compromise
Marriage involves being tolerant and making compromises.
forge/strike a compromise formal (=make a compromise)
They met again Wednesday night to try to forge a compromise.
broker/negotiate a compromise formal (=find one that everyone can accept, especially with difficulty)
They admitted that their efforts to negotiate a compromise had failed.
lead to a compromise
Negotiations between the residents and the council led to a compromise.
a good compromise
I hope we can reach a good compromise.
an acceptable/reasonable/satisfactory compromise
By 1982 an acceptable compromise had been reached.
a sensible compromise
The strikes continued and there seemed to be no chance of a sensible compromise.
an uneasy compromise (=one that people are not very happy with)
The deal represented an uneasy compromise.
a compromise proposal
The House of Representatives accepted a compromise proposal from the administration.
a compromise deal
Hopes are rising for a European compromise deal.
a compromise solution/agreement
The president was under increasing pressure to reach a compromise solution with his political opponents.
compromise your integrity
The journalist would not compromise his integrity by revealing the source for the story.
compromise your principles
The government says the plans will not compromise its environmental principles.
compromise your standards
Universities should not have to compromise their academic standards.
compromise your beliefs/convictions/ideals
Anti-war activists were put in prison for refusing to compromise their beliefs.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

compromise to reach an agreement with someone in which both of you accept less than you really want:
The employers will have to be ready to compromise if they want to avoid a strike.
The President might be willing to compromise on defense spending.
meet somebody halfway to do part of what someone wants if they do part of what you want, in order to reach an agreement:
Is the President ready to meet these senators halfway?
The asking price is £270,000. If the sellers won’t accept £250,000, maybe they would be prepared to meet us halfway and take £260,000?
make concessions if one group in a disagreement makes concessions, they let their opponents have something that they are asking for, in order to reach an agreement:
The company has already made significant concessions on pay and conditions.
There is a policy of making no concessions to terrorists.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲