INDEX:
1. to accept an offer, invitation, or request
2. to take money or a gift that someone offers you
3. to accept that something is right
4. to accept something after first refusing or opposing it
5. to accept a situation that you do not like
6. to officially accept a new law or proposal
7. to accept that something has legal or official authority
8. to accept something as payment
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ REFUSE
↑ REJECT
see also
↑ YES
↑ LET/ALLOW
↑ INVITE
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1. to accept an offer, invitation, or request
▷ accept /əkˈsept/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to say yes to an offer, an invitation, or a chance to do something :
▪ I decided to accept the job.
▪ The president has accepted an invitation to visit Beijing.
▪ If they offered you a place on the course, would you accept it?
▪ We’ve invited Professor Shaw to come and give a talk and she’s accepted.
acceptance [uncountable noun] formal
when you officially accept something, such as a job offer :
▪ She phoned the personnel department to confirm her acceptance of the job offer.
▷ take /teɪk/ [transitive verb]
if you take an opportunity or a job that someone offers you, you accept it :
▪ Stephen says he’ll take the job if the money’s right.
▪ This is a wonderful opportunity -- I think you should take it.
▷ say yes /seɪ ˈjes/ [verb phrase] spoken
if someone says yes, they agree to do what you have asked or invited them to do :
▪ We’d really like you to come to France with us this summer. Please say yes!
▪ David doesn’t usually lend his car to anyone, so I was surprised when he said yes.
say yes to (doing) something
▪ Do you really think your parents will say yes to letting you stay out late this Friday night?
▷ agree /əˈgriː/
to say you will do what someone has asked you to do, especially something that may be difficult, inconvenient etc :
▪ They’ve asked Tina to work overtime this week, and she’s agreed.
agree to do something
▪ I wish I had never agreed to teach Paul how to drive.
▪ I’ve agreed to help Sarah move this weekend.
▷ take somebody up on/take up somebody’s offer /ˌteɪk somebody ˈʌp ɒn , ˌteɪk ʌp somebodyˈs ˈɒfəʳǁ-ˈɔːf-/ [verb phrase]
to accept someone’s offer to do something for you, especially when you accept the offer some time after it was made :
▪ ‘If you ever need a babysitter, let me know.’ ‘Thanks, I might take you up on that some time.’
take up somebody’s offer of something
▪ In the end, Rick took up his parents’ offer of a loan.
▷ jump at the chance/opportunity /ˈdʒʌmp ət ðə ˌtʃɑːnsǁˌtʃæns/ɒpəˌtjuːnə̇tiǁ-ɑːpərˌtuː-/
to eagerly accept an offer to do something :
▪ Marla jumped at the chance to spend a year working in her company’s UK office.
2. to take money or a gift that someone offers you
▷ take/accept /teɪk/əkˈsept/ []
to take something someone offers you, especially money or a gift. Accept is more formal than take :
▪ Mark gave us a lot of helpful advice, but he refused to take any payment for it.
▪ We hope you’ll accept this small gift.
take something from somebody
▪ My mother always warned us never to take candy from strangers.
take bribes
▪ Ochoa was formally accused of taking bribes.
take it or leave it
said when telling someone that you will not change your offer
▪ I’ll give you $500 for the car. Take it or leave it.
accept something from somebody
▪ A Senate candidate can accept up to $2,000 from individual campaign donors.
3. to accept that something is right
▷ accept /əkˈsept/ [transitive verb]
to agree that a suggestion or idea is right, especially when you did not previously think so :
▪ People are beginning to accept the idea that higher taxes may be necessary.
accept that
▪ The judge accepted that Carter did not mean to harm anyone.
acceptance [uncountable noun]
▪ These theories have not found much acceptance among professional psychiatrists they do not accept that the theories are true .
▷ agree /əˈgriː/
to accept that a plan or suggestion is good, especially when you have the power to decide whether it will be allowed to happen :
▪ I spoke to my boss yesterday about postponing the meeting and she agreed.
agree to
▪ We want to have a big party, but I don’t think my parents will agree to it.
agree that
▪ The music teacher agreed that Dave should play at the school concert.
▷ welcome /ˈwelkəm/ [transitive verb]
to think that a plan, suggestion, or decision is very good, and eagerly accept it :
▪ Some companies have welcomed the idea of employees working from home.
▪ The university’s cafeteria welcomes any suggestions for improvement of its menu or service.
be warmly welcomed
▪ The proposal was warmly welcomed by the German Chancellor.
▷ go with /ˈgəʊ wɪð/ [transitive phrasal verb] especially spoken
use this to say that you are willing to accept and support a plan or suggestion that someone has made :
▪ ‘What do you think of Jo’s idea?’ ‘I think we should go with it - I can’t think of anything better.’
▷ take on board /ˌteɪk ɒn ˈbɔːʳd/ [verb phrase] British
to realize that a new idea or suggestion is important and that it needs to be thought about seriously :
take something on board
▪ The local government says it has taken much of the public’s criticism on board and it promises to make changes.
take on board something
▪ The management says that it will take on board suggestions from employees about child-care facilities.
▷ embrace /ɪmˈbreɪs/ [transitive verb] formal
to eagerly accept ideas, opinions etc :
▪ By the end of the last century, Americans had embraced the idea of the right to free public education for all children.
embrace something wholeheartedly/wholeheartedly embrace something
embrace it completely
▪ The President said he wholeheartedly embraced the need for further talks on the refugee crisis.
4. to accept something after first refusing or opposing it
▷ accept /əkˈsept/ [transitive verb]
to accept someone’s suggestion, offer, or demand, after refusing it for some time :
finally accept something
▪ After a three week strike, the company has finally accepted the workers’ pay demands.
▪ The owners finally accepted our offer of £62,000.
(finally) have to accept something
▪ The President finally had to accept that there was little support for his health care initiatives.
▷ give in /ˌgɪv ˈɪn/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
to unwillingly agree to accept someone’s demands after they have argued with you, asked you repeatedly, or threatened you :
▪ Jenny kept begging me for a new bicycle, and I finally gave in.
give in to
▪ The President said he would never give in to demands by terrorists.
▪ You shouldn’t always give in to other people -- stick up for yourself more.
▷ back down /ˌbæk ˈdaʊn/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
to agree to stop saying that you are right or that other people obey you :
▪ Even though it was obvious Emma’s demands were unrealistic, she wouldn’t back down.
back down on
▪ Congress has backed down on its demand for an increase in defense spending.
▷ bow to /ˈbaʊ tuː/ [transitive phrasal verb]
bow to somebody’s wishes/opinions/demands/pressure etc
to agree to do something because many people want you to, even though you do not want to do it :
▪ The government finally bowed to public opinion and abolished the unpopular tax.
▪ McDonald’s finally bowed to consumer pressure and announced that it would no longer use styrofoam boxes to package its hamburgers.
▷ accede to /əkˈsiːd tuː/ [transitive phrasal verb]
accede to somebody’s demands/request/wishes
formal
to accept someone’s demands etc :
▪ The Democrats have finally acceded to Republican demands to cut taxes.
▪ Meyer acceded to the President’s request that he continue as education secretary until a replacement could be found.
▷ cave in /ˌkeɪv ˈɪn/ [intransitive phrasal verb]
to finally accept what someone has suggested or to finally agree to something that they want - use this when you think someone should not accept something and are being weak if they do :
▪ Strike leaders are privately saying they would like an end to the dispute, but don’t want to be seen to be caving in.
cave in to
▪ It’s unlikely that the government will cave in to the rebels’ demands.
5. to accept a situation that you do not like
▷ accept /əkˈsept/ [transitive verb]
to accept a situation that you do not like but you cannot change :
▪ Divorce is hard on children, but they have to accept it.
learn/come to accept
eventually accept
▪ In the US, people have come to accept that they will probably have several different jobs over the course of their career.
accept the fact (that)
▪ It was difficult for Paul to accept the fact that he was going bald.
accept that
▪ Steptoe finally accepted that his son didn’t want to continue working in the family business.
acceptance [uncountable noun]
when you accept an unpleasant situation that cannot be changed :
▪ Her husband had been ill for some time, and she received the news of his death with calm acceptance.
▷ put up with something /pʊt ˈʌp wɪð something/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to accept an annoying situation or someone’s annoying behaviour, without trying to stop it or change it :
▪ I don’t know how you put up with this noise day after day.
▪ The kind of treatment that you have to put up with as a new army recruit is pretty horrible.
▷ tolerate /ˈtɒləreɪtǁˈtɑː-/ [transitive verb]
to accept an unpleasant situation, without trying to change it :
▪ For years the workers have had to tolerate low wages and terrible working conditions.
▪ I told him I wasn’t going to tolerate his drinking any longer.
▷ resign yourself to/be resigned to /rɪˈzaɪn jɔːʳself tuː, biː rɪˈzaɪnd tuː/ [verb phrase]
to realize that you must accept an unpleasant situation, because you cannot prevent it or avoid it :
▪ The children have had to resign themselves to being without their father.
resign yourself to the fact (that)
▪ I’m resigned to the fact that I’m not going to get the job.
resignation /ˌrezɪgˈneɪʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
when you accept a situation that you cannot change, although you do not like it :
▪ Sharon accepted the bad news with resignation.
▷ make the best of it/make the best of a bad situation /ˌmeɪk ðə ˈbest əv ɪt, meɪk ðə ˌbest əv ə ˌbæd sɪtʃuˈeɪʃ ə n/ [verb phrase]
to accept a situation that you do not like, and try to enjoy it or make it less bad :
▪ It’s not the university that I really wanted to go to, but I suppose I’ll just have to make the best of it.
▪ Six months after the earthquake, city residents continue to make the best of a bad situation.
▷ bite the bullet /ˌbaɪt ðə ˈbʊlə̇t/
to accept an unpleasant or difficult situation and say that you will deal with it :
▪ It’s not easy, but as a manager, sometimes you have to bite the bullet and fire people.
▷ beggars can’t be choosers /ˌbegəʳz kɑːnt bi ˈtʃuːzəʳzǁ-kænt-/ spoken
said when you have to accept something you do not like because you do not have the money or power to choose anything else :
▪ It would be nice to have a suit with a better fit, but as they say, beggars can’t be choosers.
▷ that’s the way the cookie crumbles /ðæts ðə ˌweɪ ðə ˌkʊki ˈkrʌmb ə lz/ spoken
said when telling someone that a difficult situation must be accepted, especially because there is no way to prevent it or there is nothing anyone can do about it :
▪ ‘Sorry you didn’t get the job, Mike.’ ‘Yeah, thanks. I guess that’s the way the cookie crumbles.’
▷ grit your teeth /ˌgrɪt jɔːʳ ˈtiːθ/ [verb phrase]
to accept a situation or job you do not like and try to deal with it in a determined way :
▪ Rescue workers here have little choice but to grit their teeth and get on with the grim task of recovering the bodies.
▪ I was desperately unhappy in that job, but had to grit my teeth and stay smiling for the sake of my children.
6. to officially accept a new law or proposal
▷ pass /pɑːsǁpæs/ [transitive verb]
if a parliament or similar group passes a law or proposal, the members vote to accept it :
▪ The State Assembly passed a law which banned smoking in public places.
pass by
▪ The bill was passed by 197 votes to 50.
▷ approve /əˈpruːv/ [transitive verb]
to officially accept something that has been planned to happen :
▪ The Medical Research Council said it could not approve the use of the new drug without further tests.
▪ Congress voted not to approve the President’s plans for cutting the arms budget.
approval [uncountable noun]
when a suggestion or plan is officially accepted :
▪ The government recently gave its approval to several US companies to sell satellite and other hi-tech equipment on the open market.
▷ ratify /ˈrætɪfaɪ, ˈrætəfaɪ/ [transitive verb]
ratify an agreement/treaty
to officially agree to accept an agreement that someone else has already agreed to accept :
▪ The US Senate refused to ratify the agreement on weapons reduction.
▪ A 1961 treaty ratified by 125 nations outlawed the production of cocaine.
ratification /ˌrætɪfəˈkeɪʃ ə n, ˌrætəfəˈkeɪʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
when an agreement is officially signed or agreed upon :
▪ Without ratification the agreement cannot be implemented.
▷ be carried /biː ˈkærid/ [verb phrase]
if a suggestion, proposal etc is carried, most of the people at an official meeting vote in favour of it and it is accepted :
▪ Chao’s proposal for a new downtown parking facility was carried at yesterday’s council meeting.
be carried by 20 votes/100 votes etc
▪ The motion to restrict handgun sales was carried by 76 votes 76 more people voted for it than voted against it .
▷ uphold /ˌʌpˈhəʊld/ [transitive verb]
if a court or a judge upholds a legal decision made by another court, they decide that it is right and they accept it :
▪ The court’s decision upheld state laws prohibiting doctor-assisted suicide.
uphold by
▪ The decision was upheld by the US Supreme Court late last year.
▷ rubber-stamp /ˌrʌbəʳ ˈstæmp/ [transitive verb]
if an official committee or someone in authority rubber-stamps a decision, they approve it immediately without thinking about it or discussing it because they have no real power of their own :
▪ The town council usually rubber-stamped anything the mayor sent their way.
7. to accept that something has legal or official authority
▷ accept /əkˈsept/ [transitive verb]
▪ The president refused to accept the authority of the state court when it tried to keep black students out of the University of Alabama.
▪ The idea of a common defence force has been accepted by some EU governments.
acceptance [uncountable noun]
widespread acceptance
general acceptance
▪ Authorities hope that the new regulations on smoking in public places will meet widespread acceptance.
▷ recognize also recognise British /ˈrekəgnaɪz, ˈrekən-/ [transitive verb]
recognize a court/government/qualification
to officially accept that it has legal or official authority :
▪ Papua New Guinea was the first country to recognize the new military regime in Fiji.
▪ British medical qualifications are recognized in many countries throughout the world.
recognition /ˌrekəgˈnɪʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
when a government, organization etc is officially accepted :
▪ It was many years before the Communist government gained official recognition from the US government.
▷ acknowledge /əkˈnɒlɪdʒǁ-ˈnɑː-/ [transitive verb]
to officially accept that a government, court, organization, or person has legal or official authority :
▪ Zaire was forced to acknowledge the authority of the Congolese state.
be acknowledged as
▪ In 1932 De Valera was elected as Prime Minister, and was acknowledged as leader of the Irish people.
8. to accept something as payment
▷ take/accept /teɪk, əkˈsept/ [transitive verb]
▪ Will you take a cheque?
▪ The hotel accepts all major credit cards.
▪ I’m afraid we only accept cash.