What does accommodate mean?
Accommodate is a versatile English verb with three principal senses. Most commonly, it means to provide lodging or sufficient space for people or things, as when a hotel accommodates guests or a venue accommodates an audience. It also means to adapt or adjust something — a plan, a schedule, a design — so that it fits particular needs or circumstances. A third sense, somewhat more formal, means to do a favour for someone, to oblige them. The word derives from the Latin accommodare, formed from ad- ('to') and commodare ('to make fit'), itself rooted in modus, meaning measure. This origin explains both its spelling, with double c and double m, and its core idea of fitting things together appropriately. Accommodate carries a helpful, considerate connotation: to accommodate someone is generally to be flexible or generous toward them. Its noun form, accommodation, refers both to lodging and to the act of adapting. Because of its frequent use in travel, planning, and interpersonal contexts, accommodate is a valuable word for expressing flexibility, capacity, and willingness to help.
verbTo provide lodging or sufficient space for someone or something; to adapt or adjust oneself or something to fit a particular purpose, need, or circumstance.
- To provide lodging or room for someone or something.
- To adapt or adjust something to suit a particular purpose or requirement.
- To do a favour for someone; to oblige.
"The hotel can accommodate up to four hundred guests."
"The conference centre can accommodate over two thousand delegates."
"She adjusted her schedule to accommodate her colleague's commitments."
Accommodate is famously the longest word most people struggle to spell — and its double c and double m come straight from Latin, where 'com-' (together) met 'modus' (measure), literally meaning to make something fit together in the right measure.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of accommodate
Accommodate comes from the Latin verb accommodare, meaning 'to make fit' or 'to adapt', formed from ad- ('towards') and commodare ('to make suitable'), which derives from commodus ('fitting, convenient') and ultimately from modus ('measure'). The word entered English in the early 17th century, initially carrying the sense of fitting or suiting one thing to another before developing its modern meanings of providing lodging and doing favours. It shares its Latin root with accommodation, commodious, and commodity.
Related word forms
How accommodate is actually used
Formal to neutral register. In British English it is common in hospitality and planning contexts; in American English it is also frequently used in the sense of obliging someone or making adjustments. The spelling with double c and double m is a well-known source of error.
Easily confused with accommodate
Commend means to praise or entrust, whereas accommodate means to provide for or adapt to someone's needs.