cope

/koʊp/

/kəʊp/

Other forms: coping; coped; copes

If you are able to cope with something, you are able to deal with it. If you can cope with waiting in long lines, you'll get the best seats. If you can cope with the stress, you will be excellent at defusing bombs.

From the Old French couper, cope means “come to blows with." Coping can imply struggle, but it’s usually met with success or at the very least, not failure. Another word to describe the balancing act of a mother who takes care of three children while also working part-time and pursuing a graduate degree is coping. “Understanding does not cure evil, but it is a definite help, inasmuch as one can cope with a comprehensible darkness,” warns Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung.

Definitions of cope

1. verb

   come to terms with
   synonyms: contend, deal, get by, grapple, make do, make out, manage

   types:

   extemporize, improvise

   manage in a makeshift way; make do with whatever is at hand

   fend

   try to manage without help

   cut, hack

   be able to manage or manage successfully

   rub along, scrape along, scrape by, scratch along, squeak by, squeeze by

   manage one's existence barely

   cope with, match, meet

   satisfy or fulfill

   type of:

   act, move

   perform an action, or work out or perform (an action)
2. noun

   a long cloak; worn by a priest or bishop on ceremonial occasions
   type of:

   cloak

   a loose outer garment
3. noun

   brick that is laid sideways at the top of a wall
   synonyms: coping, header

   type of:

   brick

   rectangular block of clay baked by the sun or in a kiln; used as a building or paving material