# accommodation

/əˌkɑməˈdeɪʃən/ (US) · /ɐkˌɒmədˈeɪʃən/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/accommodation
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 2. an adjustment or compromise

noun · CEFR B2 · Formal

a change or agreement that helps people with different needs work together.

For teachers: the process of adjusting or adapting to something; a settlement or compromise between conflicting parties.

- The company made an accommodation for the employee who needed to work from home.
- The treaty required a significant accommodation of the minority group's linguistic rights to ensure long-term regional stability.

Usage: Often used with the preposition 'to' or 'with'.

### 3. eye focus

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

the way your eye changes focus to see things clearly at different distances.

For teachers: the automatic adjustment of the lens of the eye to maintain a distinct image of an object as its distance varies.

- As people get older, the accommodation of their eyes becomes less effective.
- The patient exhibited a marked decrease in the power of accommodation, necessitating a prescription for bifocal lenses to assist with near-field tasks.

### 4. communication style

noun · CEFR C1 · Academic · Technical

changing how you speak to match the person you are talking to.

For teachers: the process by which participants in a conversation adjust their accent, diction, or gestures to match those of their interlocutors.

- She used simpler words as an accommodation for the young children in the class.
- Linguistic accommodation often occurs subconsciously when a speaker adopts the regional dialect of their host environment to build social rapport.

Usage: Commonly referred to as 'Communication Accommodation Theory' in linguistics.

## Examples

- The hotel provides comfortable accommodation for all guests.
- The university helps international students find suitable accommodation near the campus before the semester begins.
- Finding affordable accommodation in the city center has become increasingly difficult due to the recent surge in short-term holiday rentals.

---

From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.