reckoning
/'rekniɳ/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- 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
- the act of counting; reciting numbers in ascending order
- the counting continued for several hours
- a bill for an amount due
- problem solving that involves numbers or quantities