reckon

verb

reck·​on ˈre-kən 

reckoned; reckoning ˈre-kə-niŋ 

ˈrek-niŋ

transitive verb

1

a

: count

reckon the days till Christmas

b

: estimate, compute

reckon the height of a building

c

: to determine by reference to a fixed basis

the existence of the U.S. is reckoned from the Declaration of Independence

2

: to regard or think of as : consider

3

chiefly dialectal : think, suppose

I reckon I've outlived my time

—Ellen Glasgow

intransitive verb

1

: to settle accounts

2

: to make a calculation

3

a

: judge

b

chiefly dialectal : suppose, think

4

: to accept something as certain : place reliance

I reckon on your promise to help

Phrases

reckon with

: to take into consideration

reckon without

: to fail to consider : ignore

Synonyms

• calculate
• call
• conjecture
• estimate
• figure
• gauge
• gage
• guess
• judge
• make
• place
• put
• suppose

Examples of reckon in a Sentence

I reckon that we'll have to leave early.

Do you reckon you'll be able to go to the grocery store after work?

We'll have to leave early, I reckon.

They reckoned that they would reach their destination by noon.

Losses were reckoned to be over a million dollars.

Recent Examples on the Web

The space rock, reckoned to be about 1.6-4 feet (0.5-1.2 meters), according to EarthSky, was seen as a bright fireball above Yakutia in Siberia, Russia, where it’s thought that small fragments may have made it to the ground. —Jamie Carter, Forbes, 4 Dec. 2024

Telo Trucks Initially, the 4,400-lb (2,000-kg) electric truck was being offered with a 106-kWh battery pack reckoned good for up to 350 miles (550 km) on a single charge. —Paul Ridden, New Atlas, 3 Dec. 2024

Midterm elections always present a challenge to the party in power, and voters have not yet had to reckon with the consequences of the decisions of the incoming Trump administration and GOP majorities in Congress. —Austin Denean, Baltimore Sun, 28 Nov. 2024

That was also the last time they were respected as a team to reckon with around the NFL. —Zack Rosenblatt, The Athletic, 22 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English rekenen, from Old English -recenian (as in gerecenian to narrate); akin to Old English reccan

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing reckon

• a force to reckon with
• a man/woman/person to reckon with
• reckon on
• reckon up

Kids Definition

reckon

verb

reck·​on ˈrek-ən 

reckoned; reckoning -(ə-)niŋ 

1

a

: count entry 1 sense 1a, compute

reckon the days till her birthday

b

: to estimate by calculating

reckon the height of a building

2

: consider sense 3, regard

was reckoned among the leaders

3

chiefly dialect : think sense 2, suppose

4

: to look forward to as certain : depend

reckon on support

reckoner

-(ə-)nər

noun