tit-for-tat
Eye for eye
Tit-for-tat is retaliation in kind—responding to an action with an equivalent one: The trade war escalated through tit-for-tat tariffs.
The phrase implies measured reciprocity rather than disproportionate response.
In game theory, tit-for-tat names a strategy of cooperating first, then mirroring whatever the other player does.
As an adjective: tit-for-tat reprisals.
Punitive action in return
- counterstrikeRetaliatory military action
- paybackRetaliation for wrongs
- counterattackOffensive response to aggression
- retributionPunishment for wrongdoing
backlash · retaliate · countermeasure · counteraction · response · reciprocation · counterblow · like-for-like
Exchange of equivalents
- mutualityShared dependence or exchange
- reciprocalShared between two parties
- equivalenceState of being equal
- exchangeMutual giving and receiving
correspondence · balance · symmetry · trade-off · in-kind · reciprocate · interchange · complementarity
Joint action toward shared aims
- defectionAbandoning one's loyalty
- iterationRepeated procedural pass
- tournamentMulti-round competitive event
- strategicDeliberately planned for advantage
Axelrod · optimal · simulation · evolution · adaptive · forgiving · provocable · clear
reprisal
Punitive action in return
- counterstrikeRetaliatory military action
- paybackRetaliation for wrongs
- counterattackOffensive response to aggression
retribution · backlash · retaliate · countermeasure · counteraction · response · reciprocation · counterblow · like-for-like · escalation
quid-pro-quo
Exchange of equivalents
- mutualityShared dependence or exchange
- reciprocalShared between two parties
- equivalenceState of being equal
exchange · correspondence · balance · symmetry · trade-off · in-kind · reciprocate · interchange · complementarity · fairness
cooperation
Joint action toward shared aims
- defectionAbandoning one's loyalty
- iterationRepeated procedural pass
- tournamentMulti-round competitive event
Axelrod · strategic · optimal · simulation · evolution · adaptive · forgiving · provocable · clear
- Negotiation Termsdeadlock, bargaining, negotiation, stalemate, compromise
- reciprocityreciprocity, likewise, mutual benefit, mutualism, two-way street
- oscillationoscillation, back and forth, back-and-forth, to and fro, ebb and flow
tit-for-tatforgiveness
Releasing resentment toward offenders
forgiving · grace · mercy · letting it go · forbearance