countervail

C2 Topic:Cause, Change & Process

US /ˌkaʊntərˈveɪl/ UK /ˌkaʊntəˈveɪl/ See IPA manual

Freq #221366

Meanings

1

verb
to offset, compensate for, or neutralize the effect of something

A strong sense of duty countervailed his fear of entering the damaged building.
2

verb
archaic: to equal or match something in value, force, or number

No promised reward could countervail the losses the expedition had suffered.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to offset, compensate for,... counterbalance offset neutralize

2 verb · archaic: to equal or match... equal match

More counteract

Opposites

reinforce intensify compound

Word family

Forms countervailing

Derived forms countervailingcountervailable

Related forms counterweight prevail compensate

Etymology

From Middle English countrevailen and Anglo-Norman countrevaloir, from contre-, 'against,' + valoir, 'to be worth,' ultimately Latin contra + valere, 'to be strong or be worth.' The older sense was to equal in value; the modern sense is to oppose or offset an effect.

Topics

Cause, Change & Process

External links

# countervail

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /ˌkaʊntərˈveɪl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˌkaʊntəˈveɪl/
**Frequency rank:** 221366

## Meanings
1. to offset, compensate for, or neutralize the effect of something
2. archaic: to equal or match something in value, force, or number

## Examples
- A strong sense of duty countervailed his fear of entering the damaged building.
- No promised reward could countervail the losses the expedition had suffered.

## Synonyms
- counterbalance
- offset
- counteract
- neutralize

## Antonyms
- reinforce
- intensify
- compound

## Derived Forms
- countervailing
- countervailable

## Related Forms
- counterweight
- prevail
- compensate

## Etymology
From Middle English countrevailen and Anglo-Norman countrevaloir, from contre-, 'against,' + valoir, 'to be worth,' ultimately Latin contra + valere, 'to be strong or be worth.' The older sense was to equal in value; the modern sense is to oppose or offset an effect.

## Topics
- Cause, Change & Process

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