Origin: Latin suffix -ate
Compensate has 7 different meanings across 1 category:
adjust for
"engineers will work to correct the effects or air resistance"
make amends for; pay compensation for
"One can never fully repair the suffering and losses of the Jews in the Third Reich"
"She was compensated for the loss of her arm in the accident"
make up for shortcomings or a feeling of inferiority by exaggerating good qualities
"he is compensating for being a bad father"
make reparations or amends for
"right a wrongs done to the victims of the Holocaust"
do or give something to somebody in return
"Does she pay you for the work you are doing?"
To do (something good) after (something bad) happens
"After his rude comments hurt her feelings, he bought her favorite flowers to compensate."
In plain English: To compensate means to make up for something that is missing or wrong by giving someone else what they need.
"The company offered to compensate her for the lost luggage by paying cash and giving her a free ticket on their next flight."
Usage: Compensate often implies restoring something lost or damaged, whereas pay simply refers to giving money in exchange for work. Use compensate when the action addresses a specific deficit or injury rather than routine remuneration.
The word comes from the Latin compensatus, which originally meant to weigh something out in exchange or to balance accounts. It entered English with this sense of making up a loss by providing an equivalent value.