Definition

1. Noun:
   • The act of calculating or counting: The process of using numbers to determine an amount, value, or position.
   • A bill or account: A statement of money owed for goods or services.
   • A consideration or judgment: The action of taking something into account when making a judgment or prediction.
   • A settlement of accounts: A time when past actions are judged or consequences are faced.

Usage and Examples

• As the act of calculating:

  • By my reckoning, we should arrive by noon. (According to my calculation, we should arrive by noon.)
  • The careful reckoning of the votes took several hours. (The careful counting of the votes took several hours.)

• As a bill or account:

  • He asked the waiter for the reckoning. (He asked the waiter for the bill.)
  • I paid the reckoning and left the inn. (I paid the account and left the inn.)

• As a consideration or judgment:

  • In the final reckoning, honesty is the most important quality. (In the final judgment, honesty is the most important quality.)
  • You must take the new evidence into your reckoning. (You must include the new evidence in your consideration.)

Advanced Usage and Nuances

• "Day of reckoning": A time when past mistakes or wrongdoings must be accounted for and consequences are faced.

  • The corrupt officials knew their day of reckoning would come. (The corrupt officials knew a time would come when they would face judgment for their actions.)

• "Dead reckoning": (A specialized nautical term) A method of calculating a ship's position based on its last known position, speed, and course, without celestial observations.

  • The sailors used dead reckoning to navigate through the fog. (The sailors calculated their position based on their previous course and speed.)

Variants and Related Words

• Reckon (verb): To calculate, estimate, or consider.
  • I reckon it will cost about fifty dollars. (I estimate it will cost about fifty dollars.)
• Reckoner (noun): A person who calculates or a handbook of calculations.
  • He was known as a swift and accurate reckoner. (He was known as a fast and accurate calculator.)

Synonyms

• Calculation: The process of using mathematics to find a result.
• Computation: The action of mathematical calculation.
• Estimate: An approximate calculation or judgment.
• Bill: A statement of money owed for goods or services.
• Judgment: The ability to make considered decisions or form sensible opinions.

Idioms and Phrases

• "Short reckonings make long friends": (Proverb) Settling accounts promptly helps maintain good friendships.

  • Remember, short reckonings make long friends, so let's pay our share now. (Remember, settling debts quickly preserves friendship, so let's pay our share now.)

• "To be out in one's reckoning": To have miscalculated or been mistaken in one's judgment.

  • If you think he'll agree, you are out in your reckoning. (If you think he'll agree, you have miscalculated.)

• "To make no reckoning of something": To disregard or not take something into account.

  • He made no reckoning of the risks involved. (He did not consider the risks involved.)

Noun

1. the act of counting; reciting numbers in ascending order
   • the counting continued for several hours
2. a bill for an amount due
3. problem solving that involves numbers or quantities