ameliorate
Usage
What are other ways to say ameliorate?
The formal word ameliorate implies improving oppressive, unjust, or difficult conditions: to ameliorate working conditions. Improve usually implies remedying a lack or a felt need: to improve a process, oneself (as by gaining more knowledge). To better is to improve conditions which, though not bad, are unsatisfying: to better an attempt, oneself (as by gaining a higher salary).
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
His doctors managed to ameliorate the flaw with insoles, but not the pain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
The biggest risks to birds come from the climate: “Two-thirds of North American birds are at increasing risk of extinction from global temperature rise,” the society reported — a threat that wind power can ameliorate.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026
The three paragraphs on Africa at the end spoke about partnering with "select countries to ameliorate conflict, foster mutually beneficial trade relationships" and move from supplying aid to encouraging investment and economic growth.
From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026
Ideally, Owens and Erika Kirk could find alignment, and ameliorate some of Owens’ more looney ideas.
From Slate ● Dec. 22, 2025
No matter how sedulously Ben and Mary Anne prepared for the nightmare, nothing could ameliorate their discomfort at entering a new high school for their annual pilgrimage among strangers.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
"Overall, greater international co-operation is needed to ensure that ESG and climate transition-related practices progress in a manner that ameliorates the current market fragmentation, and strengthens investor confidence and market integrity."
From Reuters ● Oct. 4, 2021
This level of fascination blocks any competing thoughts or worries from bubbling to the surface and allows for a quiet focus that not only ameliorates anxiety but benefits us cognitively as well.
From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2020
Charity, while wonderful, ameliorates the symptoms of inequality, but it does not address its root causes.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 27, 2020
You say “at first” you turned down their advances, as if that somehow ameliorates your later decision to accept their advances.
From Slate ● Oct. 28, 2019
It may not, indeed, be styled an intellectual pursuit, but neither, surely, can it be called savage, seeing that it softens and ameliorates the rugged spirit of man.”
From Rivers of Ice by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne
On that, Buchbinder is optimistic that a key cause of rising rates, higher energy costs, will be ameliorated in coming months.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
The 40-foot elevation drop from the General Hospital forecourt to the commercial hub will be ameliorated by raising the low area about 20 feet.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
It would have been a lot to ask that Simkhovitch, idealistic and self-sacrificing, predict that immigrant poverty and its housing conditions would be ameliorated with time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 24, 2026
Medication also ameliorated the physical symptoms of anxiety and hypervigilance.
From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2025
We have ameliorated on a planetary scale injustices that only recently were global and endemic.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Her conundrum has lately been making me think about Daniel Shapiro's fascinating book, "Negotiating the Nonnegotiable," and his clear-eyed examination of the roles of tribalism and identity in accelerating conflict — and in ameliorating it.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2025
Whatever you think of their intended goals, they would also have an unintended effect of ameliorating one of the worst features of the property tax: its localism.
From Slate ● Jan. 6, 2025
The researchers employed a novel computational method developed earlier by Morgun and Shulzhenko, transkingdom network analysis, to uncover TXN's mechanism for ameliorating metabolic syndrome.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 21, 2023
The recent precipitation is a blessing for ameliorating the drought that has persisted in the Southwest.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 2, 2023
She had a notion about the air down here and its ameliorating effects on the circulation.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
Vocabulary lists containing ameliorate
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Crucible
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Frankenstein
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
