verbs - Usage of "compensate" as a recompense for gain instead of loss



To keep this PG, I've changed the popular saying we've all heard:



"He has a huge truck to compensate for his small ego"



But I've recently been using a sort of counter to the joke, in one form or another (which will need some translation to be funny, or funnier I guess):



"I have a small truck to compensate for my large ego"



My question is, is this a correct usage of the word compensate? Can you compensate for something large with something smaller?



Answer



Dictionary.com can answer your question:



2. to counterbalance; offset; be equivalent to: He compensated his homely appearance with great personal charm.



Imagine scales balancing your large ego on the one side with the small truck on the other.


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