indemnify

verb

in·​dem·​ni·​fy in-ˈdem-nə-ˌfī How to pronounce indemnify (audio)
indemnified; indemnifying

transitive verb

1
: to secure against hurt, loss, or damage
2
: to make compensation to for incurred hurt, loss, or damage
indemnifier noun
Choose the Right Synonym for indemnify

pay, compensate, remunerate, satisfy, reimburse, indemnify, repay, recompense mean to give money or its equivalent in return for something.

pay implies the discharge of an obligation incurred.

paid their bills

compensate implies a making up for services rendered.

an attorney well compensated for her services

remunerate clearly suggests paying for services rendered and may extend to payment that is generous or not contracted for.

promised to remunerate the searchers handsomely

satisfy implies paying a person what is required by law.

all creditors will be satisfied in full

reimburse implies a return of money that has been spent for another's benefit.

reimbursed employees for expenses

indemnify implies making good a loss suffered through accident, disaster, warfare.

indemnified the families of the dead miners

repay stresses paying back an equivalent in kind or amount.

repay a favor with a favor

recompense suggests due return in amends, friendly repayment, or reward.

passengers were recompensed for the delay

Examples of indemnify in a Sentence

Again, let's look at auto insurance, which indemnifies the holder against loss. If a policy-holder's car is wrecked, the insurance company sends him a check for the value of the car … John Steele Gordon, American Heritage, May–June 1992
We moved quickly, and the House approved an appropriation of $60,000 to indemnify Hamilton Jordan for his legal fees. Tip O'Neill, in Man of the House, 1987
Likewise, the "sexagenarians law," which freed slaves over 60 years old, required those slaves to indemnify their masters, as did nearly every act of manumission. Shepard Foreman, New York Times Book Review, 2 Nov. 1986
the company generously indemnifies workers who are injured on the job
Recent Examples on the Web Google will indemnify users against claims that content created by the AI systems, in response to user prompts or inputs, violates a third party's intellectual property rights. Benj Edwards, Ars Technica, 13 Oct. 2023 Iran, meanwhile, is creeping toward nuclear weapons, which could turbocharge its regional revisionism by indemnifying its regime against an Israeli or U.S. response. Hal Brands, Foreign Affairs, 26 Jan. 2024 Under cross examination, Moss conceded that another publication, the Gateway Pundit, was the first to publicly indemnify her and her mother in December 2020. Robert Legare, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2023 As comptroller, in response to demands by the World Jewish Congress and other groups, Mr. Hevesi used his power over city pension fund investments to help force Swiss banks to indemnify heirs of Holocaust victims for their unredeemed Nazi-era bank balances. Sam Roberts, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2023 Adobe, which created a text-to-image generation system called Firefly, has offered to indemnify Firefly users from copyright infringement lawsuits. Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 18 July 2023 Snyder had asked the N.F.L. to indemnify him from liability in outstanding and potential future legal disputes, but did not receive such protection. Ken Belson, New York Times, 20 July 2023 Manning cited protection under the legal doctrine of qualified immunity, which is often used to indemnify law-enforcement officers from civil action and prosecution. Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 24 July 2023 Some studios are telling dual DGA and WGA members that those duties are required of directors, and some are offering to indemnify hyphenates who continue to perform their directorial duties in the event the WGA pursues punishment for breaking its strike rules. Katie Kilkenny, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 May 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'indemnify.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin indemnis unharmed, from in- + damnum damage

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of indemnify was in 1611

Dictionary Entries Near indemnify

Cite this Entry

“Indemnify.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/indemnify. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

indemnify

verb
in·​dem·​ni·​fy in-ˈdem-nə-ˌfī How to pronounce indemnify (audio)
indemnified; indemnifying
1
: to insure or protect against loss, damage, or injury
2
: to give something in order to make up for loss, damage, or injury
indemnify victims of a disaster
indemnification
-ˌdem-nə-fə-ˈkā-shən
noun

Legal Definition

indemnify

transitive verb
in·​dem·​ni·​fy in-ˈdem-nə-ˌfī How to pronounce indemnify (audio)
indemnified; indemnifying
1
: to secure against hurt, loss, or damage
2
: to compensate or reimburse for incurred hurt, loss, or damage
indemnifier noun
Etymology

Latin indemnis unharmed, from in- not + damnum damage

More from Merriam-Webster on indemnify

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