compesce means to keep in check; to restrain or hold down. It carries an Arena rating of 1635, earned across 21 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, compesce ranks #658 of 13,217 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #2,656 of 13,217 for Most Ponderous Words, #2,748 of 13,217 for The Improbable, #5,435 of 13,217 for Most Incisive Words.
compesce is pronounced /kəmˈpɛs/.
Why “compesce” is a great word
COMPESCE — [Verb] To keep in check; to restrain or hold down. From the Latin compēscō, compescĕre ("to restrain, to check"). Unlike "suppress," which implies an active, forceful quelling, or "curb," which suggests an external limit, to compesce is the quieter, more general art of internal governance. It is the deep breath drawn against a tide of fury, the firm hand that stays a restless animal's tremor, or the measured swallowing of an unwise retort—a private, muscular vigilance, the daily work of holding a fragile order against the world's persistent tug.
Etymology
Latin compēscō (“to restrain”).
verb
- To keep in check; to restrain or hold down“And has coerced and compesced them (all that did not contrive to desert) into soldierly obedience[.]”
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- requiesce 83% match — To rest, repose. vs compesce →
- quiescency 82% match — Quiescence: the state of being quiescent, or at rest vs compesce →
- accoy 82% match — To soothe, to calm; to assuage, to subdue. vs compesce →
- cicurate 81% match — To tame, domesticate. vs compesce →
- requiescence 81% match — Quiescence, repose, quiet. vs compesce →
- consopite 81% match — To lull to sleep, to quieten, or to dull. vs compesce →
- remorate 81% match — To hinder; to delay. vs compesce →
- intermit 81% match — To interrupt, to stop or cease temporarily or periodically; to suspend. vs compesce →