To requite something means to return or repay it, especially a feeling or an action. When you requite someone's kindness, you do something kind for them in return. When you requite someone's loyalty, you show loyalty back to them.

The word appears most often in literature and formal writing, particularly when discussing love or devotion. In classic stories, a character might hope their love will be requited, meaning the person they love will love them back. Unrequited love is when someone loves another person who doesn't return those feelings, like when your friend has a crush on someone who doesn't even notice them.

You might also see the word used for revenge or retaliation. To requite an injury means to pay someone back for harm they caused you. In Shakespeare's plays, characters often speak of requiting wrongs, meaning they plan to get even with someone who hurt them.

The word carries a sense of balance and reciprocity: what you give should be returned in kind. If someone helps you move house, requiting their effort might mean helping them paint their garage next month. The word suggests that fairness means we return what others give us, whether good or bad.