reparation

[ rep-uh-rey-shuhn ]
See synonyms for: reparationreparations on Thesaurus.com

noun
    • the making of amends for wrong or injury done: In reparation for the injustice, the king made him head of the agricultural department.

    • something done or given to make amends:The prosecutor has requested a reparation of $32 million to victims of the crime.

  1. Usually reparations .

    • compensation in money, material, labor, etc., payable by a defeated country to another country or to an individual for loss suffered during or as a result of war: The U.S. government eventually disbursed reparations to Japanese Americans who had been interned during World War II.

    • monetary or other compensation payable by a country to an individual for a historical wrong: The article is about reparations to Black people for the enslavement of their ancestors.

  1. restoration to good condition.

Origin of reparation

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English reparacion, from Middle French, from Late Latin reparātiōn- (stem of reparātiō ), equivalent to Latin reparāt(us) (past participle of reparāre “to repair” (see repair1, -ate1 ) + -iōn- noun suffix (see -ion)

synonym study For reparation

1. See redress.

Other words for reparation

Opposites for reparation

Other words from reparation

  • non·rep·a·ra·tion, noun

Words Nearby reparation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use reparation in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for reparation

reparation

/ (ˌrɛpəˈreɪʃən) /


noun
  1. the act or process of making amends: an injury admitting of no reparation

  2. (usually plural) compensation exacted as an indemnity from a defeated nation by the victors: esp the compensation demanded of Germany by the Treaty of Versailles after World War I

  1. the act or process of repairing or state of having been repaired

Origin of reparation

1
C14 reparacioun, ultimately from Latin reparāre to repair 1

Derived forms of reparation

  • reparative (rɪˈpærətɪv) or reparatory, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for reparation

reparation

Compensation demanded by a victorious nation from a defeated nation. Reparations can be in the form of goods or money.

Notes for reparation

After World War I, heavy reparation debts were imposed on Germany by Britain, France, and the other victorious nations. Resentment over these reparations aided the rise of Adolf Hitler.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.