Restituting

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The act of restoring or returning something to its original owner or state as a form of compensation
2. The process of giving back or compensating for loss or damage by returning what was taken or harmed
3. The action of repairing a wrong by delivering what was lost or returning something to its proper place

Etymology: "Restituting" is the present participle of "restitute," a verb that came into English from Old French "restituer," which in turn descends from the Latin "restituere," meaning "to replace" or "to restore." The Latin verb was built from "re-," "back" or "again," and "statuere," "to set up or establish," so its literal sense is to set something up again in its former place. That physical sense of putting something back where it belongs is still visible in the word's meaning. To restitute is to make good a loss by handing back what was taken or by returning a thing to its proper position, so the idea of restoring an object and the idea of repairing a wrong are two faces of the same Latin act. The participle form is used when describing the ongoing process of doing this, as in an agency restituting stolen property to its owners.

Synonyms: restoring, returning, reimbursing, repaying, recompensing

Antonyms: withholding, stealing, taking, keeping, retaining