Reconcile
Bank accounts, friendships, and version control branches all need the same verb when two truths stopped matching.
Learn This WordMeaning
To restore friendly relations; to make two ideas, facts, or accounts consistent with each other.
Memory trick
RE + CONCILE: “bring together again.” Reconcile = re-unite what’s split.
Examples
They worked to reconcile after months of misunderstanding.
Finance reconciled the invoices with the bank statements.
It’s hard to reconcile his words with his actions.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Etymology
From Latin reconciliare "bring together again," from re- "again" + conciliare "to bring together."
Usage Notes
Has both emotional and technical uses (relationships vs accounting). In product/data work, “reconcile” is excellent for “make the numbers match.”
Real-life contexts
Use for alignment: "We need to reconcile priorities before committing."
Use for data: "Let’s reconcile these numbers with the source of truth."
Use for relationships: "I hope we can reconcile and move forward."
Common Mistakes
“Reconcile to” is common in accounting (“reconcile to the ledger”), but in general writing prefer “reconcile X with Y.”
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Start LearningQuick Facts
Part of Speech
verb
Difficulty
intermediateMonthly Searches
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