reciprocate

reciprocate: reciprocate, retaliate, requite, return can mean to give back usually in kind or in quantity.

Reciprocate may imply a mutual, equivalent, or roughly equivalent, exchange or a paying back of what one has received. The connotations of alternating movements and of correspondence between what is interchanged are usually stressed

{
he touched his friend's glass lightly and reciprocated the former toast— Joyce
}

{
he ... is peevish and sensitive when his advances are not reciprocated— Shaw
}

{
I hope in a few days to reciprocate for your verses by sending you a few remarks suggested by reading . . . Gény— Justice Holmes
}

Retaliate denotes chiefly a paying back of an injury and usually implies return in exact kind, often vengefully

{
terrorist violence erupts . . . troops retaliate quickly— N. Y. Times
}

{
schoolmates quick to recognize a victim who would never retaliate— Gorer
}

{
though at first he considers the possibility ... of retaliating on those who have injured him— Krutch
}

Requite can imply simply a paying back, usually reciprocally, but additionally it can imply a paying back according to what one construes as the merits of the case and then need not imply satisfaction to both parties concerned

{
his servility was requited with cold contempt— Macaulay
}

{
Drake . . . had requited the wrongs inflicted by the Inquisition on English seamen— J. R. Green
}

{
requited their hospitality by robbing them of much of their supplies— Amer. Guide Series: Me.
}

Return (see also RETURN vb) does not emphasize the idea of interchanging so strong in reciprocate but rather that of paying back whatever has been given, usually in kind but sometimes by way of contrast

{
return a visit
}

{
return a blow
}

{
return good for evil
}

{
he returns my envy with pity— Steele
}

{
devotion that it was not in her nature to return— Naomi Lewis
}

Analogous words: interchange, *exchange: repay, compensate, recompense (see PAY)

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Synonyms:

Alternate, act interchangeably, Interchange, exchange, requite

Look at other dictionaries:

Reciprocate — Re*cip ro*cate, v. t. To give and return mutually; to make return for; to give in return; to interchange; to alternate; as, to reciprocate favors. Cowper. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Reciprocate — Re*cip ro*cate (r[ e]*s[i^]p r[ o]*k[=a]t), v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Reciprocated} (r[ e]*s[i^]p r[ o]*k[=a] t[e^]d); p. pr. & vb. n. {Reciprocating}.] [L. reciprocatus, p. p. of reciprocare. See {Reciprocal}.] To move forward and backward… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
reciprocate — I verb act interchangeably, alternate, cooperate, exchange, follow successively, give and take, give in return, inter se dare, interchange, pay back, perform by turns, perform responsively, recompense, refund, reimburse, repay, requite, respond,… … Law dictionary
reciprocate — (v.) to return, requite, 1610s, from L. reciprocatus, pp. of reciprocare, from reciprocus (see RECIPROCAL (Cf. reciprocal)). Related: Reciprocated; reciprocating … Etymology dictionary
reciprocate — [v] exchange, alternate; equal barter, be equivalent, correspond, feel in return, interchange, make up for*, match, pay one’s dues*, recompense, render, repay, reply, requite, respond, retaliate, retort, return, return the compliment*, scratch… … New thesaurus
reciprocate — ► VERB ▪ respond to (a gesture, action, or emotion) with a corresponding one. DERIVATIVES reciprocation noun … English terms dictionary
reciprocate — [ri sip′rəkāt΄] vt. reciprocated, reciprocating [< L reciprocatus, pp. of reciprocare < reciprocus: see RECIPROCAL] 1. a) to give and get, do, feel, etc. reciprocally; interchange b) to give, do, feel, etc. in return; return in kind or… … English World dictionary
reciprocate — verb ( cated; cating) Date: 1607 transitive verb 1. to give and take mutually 2. to return in kind or degree < reciprocate a compliment gracefully > intransitive verb 1. to make a return for something < we hope to reciprocate for your … New Collegiate Dictionary
reciprocate — UK [rɪˈsɪprəkeɪt] / US [rɪˈsɪprəˌkeɪt] verb [intransitive/transitive] Word forms reciprocate : present tense I/you/we/they reciprocate he/she/it reciprocates present participle reciprocating past tense reciprocated past participle reciprocated… … English dictionary
reciprocate — v. (D; intr.) to reciprocate by; for; with * * * [rɪ sɪprəkeɪt] for with (D; intr.) to reciprocate by … Combinatory dictionary

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reciprocate

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