To compensate; to make up for a loss or deficiency by providing something of equivalent value.
From Latin 'compensare' (to weigh together, balance), an archaic or poetic form that preserves the older English usage before 'compensate' became standardized. The '-e' ending is characteristic of Middle English verbs.
This is an older, rarer cousin of 'compensate'—you'll find it in Shakespeare and medieval texts! Language evolves, and simpler word forms often get replaced by fancier ones, but 'compense' shows us how the root idea stayed alive even as pronunciations changed.
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