to come to terms with

Examples

• All

• It is and I have been trying to come to terms with that for many, many years.

  Anything Goes With James English

• One is they have to come to terms with the fact that writing is not just a career.

• And she was just coming to terms with the loss of that.

  Jubilee

• And how does a country kind of come to terms with with the fact that so many people are leaving?

• One way or another, North and South would have to come to terms with that.

  Fiction book (1992)

• Alone in the still of the night, he struggled to come to terms with his feelings.

  Fiction book (1991)

• Over the years, they had gradually come to terms with the idea that Tommy was probably dead.

  Fiction book (2000)

• It's just that we haven't fully, you know, come to terms with that loss of status.

  Chris Williamson

• Nonetheless, like Epifania, she is a woman coming to terms with her own autonomy.

  Academic text (2017)

• It took her months to come to terms with her divorce and start anew.

Synonyms

A

to accept

vsto come to terms with

∞ 3.5

To tolerate an unpleasant situation without complaining

emphasizes also learning to manage or actively handle the problem

L

to live with

vsto come to terms with

563 3.9

To accept something unpleasant that you cannot change

focuses more on learning to manage the situation rather than just enduring it

P

to put up with

vsto come to terms with

288 4.3

To accept something unpleasant without complaining

involves learning to deal with it, not only enduring in silence

C

to cope

vsto come to terms with

272 2.9

To deal with problems and difficult situations

focuses on mental settling and longer term adjustment as well

C

to cope with

vsto come to terms with

150 2.9

Manage a difficult problem, situation or strong feeling

also involves adjusting emotionally to the situation, not only practical management

C

to come to grips

vsto come to terms with

30 5.5

Start to accept and deal with a difficult situation

focuses on mental settling and lasting adjustment rather than the initial stage

R

to reconcile

vsto come to terms with

27 5.8

To accept something unpleasant that you cannot change

is a more everyday phrasal expression used in common speech

F

to face the truth

vsto come to terms with

16 3.7

Accept real facts even when they are painful

covers both mental settling and practical handling over time

B

to bear the thought

vsto come to terms with

• Informal

9 6.1

To accept or live with an idea that makes you unhappy

is more about practical managing and emotional settling of the situation

T

to take as it comes

vsto come to terms with

• Informal

6 5.0

Accept what happens calmly and do not worry

is more about a conscious decision to settle and manage difficult situations

G

to grin and bear it

vsto come to terms with

• Informal

5 6.8

To accept an unpleasant situation without complaining

is more about adjusting mentally and finding ways to handle it

G

to get to grips with

vsto come to terms with

• UK

3 5.4

To begin to understand and deal with a difficult subject or problem

is more about steady mental settlement and gradual practical handling

T

to take the rough with the smooth

vsto come to terms with

• Informal

7.7

Accept the good and bad parts of a situation

focuses on handling a specific problem rather than life's general ups and downs

M

to make your bed and lie in it

vsto come to terms with

• Informal

7.0

To accept the bad results of your own choices

applies to adjusting and dealing with consequences generally, not only those from choices

Antonyms

D

to deny

∞ 2.0

To say that something is not true

R

to resist

311 2.2

Act against authority, rules or change

How Accepting

to find peace

35 4.3

to embrace

390 3.9

to accept

∞ 3.5

to come to terms with

76 4.1

to acknowledge

367 3.8

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology