compensate for

compensate for (something)

1. To offset (or attempt to offset) something. His sudden honesty cannot compensate for all the lies he told me over the past year.
2. To reimburse someone for something. In this usage, the recipient is named between "compensate" and "for." If you take the job, we will compensate you for all of your relocation expenses.
See also: compensate
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

compensate someone for something

to pay someone [back] money for something. Don't worry. I will compensate you for your loss. Let us compensate you for your expenses.
See also: compensate

compensate for something

to counterbalance or counteract something; to make up for something. Your present kindness will not compensate for your previous rudeness.
See also: compensate
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • (someone or something) promises well
  • a thing of the past
  • a/the feel of (something)
  • (I) wouldn't (do something) if I were you
  • (have) got something going (with someone)
  • a straw will show which way the wind blows
  • accompanied by
  • accompanied by (someone or something)
  • accompany
  • a crack at (someone or something)
References in periodicals archive
According to the vice-president of CAIT Arun Gupta, the government should compensate for the losses the traders have suffered through the taxes, the convergence and parking charge they have paid.
Several different preventative methods and corrective procedures have been introduced to compensate for errors caused by camera shake.
For instance, Type P valves provide an excellent way to compensate for pressure fluctuations within a plumbing system when a toilet is flushed or an appliance is turned on, but they cannot make adjustments for either sudden or gradual changes in supply temperature.
Experienced pilots unconsciously feel the natural/predictable modes of an aircraft and successfully compensate for poor handling qualities.
The sensor also has the ability to automatically compensate for differences in the object's color and surface, the ability to track the smallest pits, surface textures and sharp increases in object height, and the capability to measure both on frosted and furbished surfaces.
The second component is designed to compensate for the cost to PPC of water-resource management and irrigation work imposed on it by the Greek State in conjunction with the construction of the power stations.
The jaws of the retractable jaw chuck extend and retract to enable the turning of shafts in a single operation and also compensate for part irregularities.
Pre-compensation can be turned off when receivers are used that compensate for the high-frequency roll-off of the cable and backplane.
Kusters' Swimming Roll (S-Roll) is the pioneering invention making it possible to compensate for roll deflections regarding nip forces, which allowed the building of wide and fast paper machines.
To some extent, managers may need to adjust investigators' caseloads to compensate for the additional tasks associated with asset forfeiture.
(In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas stops secreting insulin.) To compensate for insulin resistance, the body secretes more and more, but it can't keep up.
In this case, no new areas of heightened neural activity compensate for the effects of sleepiness.
Some companies may offer additional deferred compensation plans to Highly Compensated Employees to compensate for the possible restrictions of a 401(k) plan."
In addition, the company increases (grosses up) the payment to the employee to compensate for excise taxes.
Polyflow tried simulating a change in slope of the conical surface of the die plate to compensate for melt-temperature differences.