exact

1 of 2

verb

ex·act ig-ˈzakt

exacted; exacting; exacts

Synonyms of exact next

transitive verb

: to call for forcibly or urgently and obtain

from them has been exacted the ultimate sacrifice—

D. D. Eisenhower

: to call for as necessary or desirable

exactable

ig-ˈzak-tə-bəl

adjective

exactor noun

or less commonly exacter

ig-ˈzak-tər

exact

2 of 2

adjective

: exhibiting or marked by strict, particular, and complete accordance with fact or a standard

: marked by thorough consideration or minute measurement of small factual details

exactness

ig-ˈzak(t)-nəs

noun

Did you know?

Exact derives from a form of the Latin verb exigere, meaning "to drive out, to demand, or to measure." (Another descendant of exigere is the word exigent, which can mean "demanding" or "requiring immediate attention.") Exigere, in turn, was formed by combining the prefix ex- with the verb agere, meaning "to drive." Agere has been a prolific source of words for English speakers; it is the ancestor of agent, react, mitigate, and navigate, just to name a few. Incidentally, if you are looking for a synonym of the verb exact, you could try demand, call for, claim, or require.

Did you know?

Do you exact or extract revenge?

The verb exact (as in, "exacting revenge" or "exacting a promise") is not as commonly encountered as the adjective exact, (as in "an exact copy" or "exact measurements"). Sometimes people will mistakenly use the more common verb extract when they really want exact. Extract can refer to removing something by pulling or cutting or to getting information from someone who does not want to give it. While both words refer to getting something they are used in different ways. You extract a tooth, but you exact revenge.

Choose the Right Synonym for exact

Verb

demand, claim, require, exact mean to ask or call for something as due or as necessary.

demand implies peremptoriness and insistence and often the right to make requests that are to be regarded as commands.

demanded payment of the debt

claim implies a demand for the delivery or concession of something due as one's own or one's right.

claimed the right to manage his own affairs

require suggests the imperativeness that arises from inner necessity, compulsion of law or regulation, or the exigencies of the situation.

the patient requires constant attention

exact implies not only demanding but getting what one demands.

exacts absolute loyalty

Adjective

correct, accurate, exact, precise, nice, right mean conforming to fact, standard, or truth.

correct usually implies freedom from fault or error.

correct answers

socially correct dress

accurate implies fidelity to fact or truth attained by exercise of care.

an accurate description

exact stresses a very strict agreement with fact, standard, or truth.

exact measurements

precise adds to exact an emphasis on sharpness of definition or delimitation.

precise calibration

nice stresses great precision and delicacy of adjustment or discrimination.

makes nice distinctions

right is close to correct but has a stronger positive emphasis on conformity to fact or truth rather than mere absence of error or fault.

the right thing to do

Example Sentences

Verb They would not rest until they had exacted revenge. He was able to exact a promise from them. Adjective Those were his exact words. The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation. We don't know the exact nature of the problem. Predicting the path of hurricanes is not an exact science. The police have an exact description of the killer. Please take the most exact measurements possible. He is very exact in the way he solves a problem. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The idea is to help officers get to exact shooting locations faster. —

oregonlive, 17 Feb. 2023 Will the Cornhuskers be able to exact any semblance of revenge in this rematch? —

Michael Arinze, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2023 Though the flanks are proving one of the most difficult positions to exact top form from the forwards, president Joan Laporta and Mateu Alemany will fail to find a free transfer better than any of Ansu Fati, Raphinha and Ferran Torres to name a few. —

Tom Sanderson, Forbes, 24 Jan. 2023 After Democrats stripped Gosar and Greene of their committee assignments, McCarthy promised them better ones and signaled his intent to exact retribution on Democrats. —

Jill Filipovic, CNN, 17 Jan. 2023 This monetary stringency will exact a price: The Fed sees economic growth of just 0.5% next year, down sharply from September’s 1.2% projection and consistent with a recession. —

Greg Ip, WSJ, 15 Dec. 2022 Billy Wagner rejected that idea, believing the Rhodens would exact revenge. —

The Enquirer, 2 Dec. 2022 The depth of talent in the East means these early-season losses could exact a late-season toll. —

Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 17 Nov. 2022 Right as Kathleen is about to exact revenge on Henry, a massive Cordyceps invasion occurs, including the debut of the dreaded and massive Bloater. —

William Goodman, Men's Health, 11 Feb. 2023

Adjective

These bonds will still pay out the exact amount they were originally expected to receive. —

Mark Le Dain, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2023 Although an exact number of victims is difficult to pin down, labor trafficking in Wisconsin heavily affects migrant agricultural workers from mostly Spanish-speaking countries. —

Jessica Rodriguez, Journal Sentinel, 24 Feb. 2023 This calculator uses your exact number and doesn’t put people into categories the way your report did. —

Dr. Keith Roach, oregonlive, 23 Feb. 2023 English is the second language of most of her students, so vocabulary and grammar—the exact things QuilBot and Grammarly target—are still important assessment points. —

Chris Lee, Ars Technica, 21 Feb. 2023 DeLong and his team are now working to figure out exact numbers. —

Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 21 Feb. 2023 Across Iran, more than 500 people have been killed and nearly 20,000 arrested since protests began, human rights group Hrana estimates, though reporting restrictions make exact numbers impossible to determine. —

Babak Dehghanpisheh, Washington Post, 19 Feb. 2023 Several people were inside the building at the time of the collapse, according to assistant chief Brian Partch, though the exact number wasn’t clear. —

Megan Pacer, Anchorage Daily News, 18 Feb. 2023 The exact number of people losing their jobs is still unknown because there are several positions unfilled throughout the business and some of those people may apply for those jobs. —

Dallas News, 14 Feb. 2023 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'exact.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English exacten "to require as payment," borrowed from Latin exāctus, past participle of exigere "to drive out, achieve, enforce payment of or the performance of (a task), require, inquire into, examine" from ex- ex- entry 1 + agere "to drive (cattle), be in motion, do, perform" — more at agent

Adjective

borrowed from Latin exāctus, from past participle of exigere "to drive out, achieve, require, inquire into, examine, measure" — more at exact entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

1564, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1533, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of exact was in 1533

See more words from the same year