get even
Exact reciprocal harm
Get even means to retaliate or settle a score—to return harm for harm received.
The phrase implies restoring balance after being wronged: He swore he'd get even with the people who cheated him.
It can also mean to equalize a situation: After losing the first game, they got even in the second.
Retaliation for wrongs
- revengePunishing a wrongdoer
- vengeanceRetaliation for injury
- retributionPunishment for wrongdoing
- reprisalPunitive action in return
counterattack · settle the score · avenge · recompense · comeuppance · tit-for-tat · eye for an eye · strike back
Persistent bitter displeasure
- spitePetty malicious intent
- animosityActive, bitter hostility
- bitternessSharp, unpleasant taste or feeling
- vendettaProlonged retaliatory conflict
bad blood · ill will · score to settle · long memory · unfinished business · malice · vindictiveness · brooding
Just and equal treatment
- equityImpartial treatment or ownership value
- redressCompensation for injury
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
- karmic justiceEarned moral consequence
righting wrongs · just deserts · vindication · rectification · poetic justice · legal recourse · seeking justice · holding accountable
Struggle for supremacy
- one-upmanshipQuest to surpass others
- competitiveDriven by rivalry
- match pointFinal point needed
- comebackRecovery after decline
underdog · outdo · surpass · defeat · victory · beat · overtake · tied
payback
Retaliation for wrongs
- revengePunishing a wrongdoer
- vengeanceRetaliation for injury
- retributionPunishment for wrongdoing
reprisal · counterattack · settle the score · avenge · recompense · comeuppance · tit-for-tat · eye for an eye · strike back · hit back
resentment
Persistent bitter displeasure
- spitePetty malicious intent
- animosityActive, bitter hostility
- bitternessSharp, unpleasant taste or feeling
vendetta · bad blood · ill will · score to settle · long memory · unfinished business · malice · vindictiveness · brooding
fairness
Just and equal treatment
- equityImpartial treatment or ownership value
- redressCompensation for injury
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
righting wrongs · karmic justice · just deserts · vindication · rectification · poetic justice · legal recourse · seeking justice · holding accountable · day of reckoning
competition
Struggle for supremacy
- one-upmanshipQuest to surpass others
- competitiveDriven by rivalry
- match pointFinal point needed
comeback · underdog · outdo · surpass · defeat · victory · beat · overtake · tied · deadlock
- retributionretribution, revenge, payback, vengeance, retaliation
- resentmentresentful, grudge, bitterness, rancor, spite
- returnsreturn, rebound, comeback, bounce back, give back
get evenforgive
Cease to blame
turn the other cheek · forgive and forget · let go · pardon · let bygones be bygones
get evensubmit
Present for consideration
yield · back down · capitulate · accept defeat · roll over
even, get, forget, forgotten, getting, gets, gotten, forgot, forgetting