EN

Synonyms for ameliorate

16 synonyms
4 antonyms
1 meaning

verb

Most common

improve amend alleviate meliorate embetter

All synonyms

Verb

1. Improve

improve, meliorate, alleviate, amend, better, rectify, help, promote, raise, mend, advance, revamp, emend, remedy

Other

re-form, embetter

Antonyms

aggravate, worsen, deteriorate

All antonyms of ameliorate →

Definitions

v. 1
To make better, or improve, something perceived to be in a negative condition.
They offered some compromises in an effort to ameliorate the situation.

Related words

Word family: amelioratory amelioration ameliorative ameliorable

Forms

Past participle: ameliorated
e.g. ameliorated → improved, meliorated, alleviated, amended…

Choose the right word

Ameliorate, Correct, Reform or Rectify?

We correct evils, reform abuses, rectify incidental conditions of evil or error; we ameliorate poverty and misery, which we can not wholly remove.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

improve This app will help you improve your English level.
amend The Diet is likely to amend this unpopular law.
alleviate How can Algeria alleviate the impact of inflation?

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
ameliorate		steady
improve		steady
amend		falling
alleviate		steady
meliorate		falling

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters: help¹, mend¹
5 letters: raise¹, amend², emend
6 letters: better², remedy³, revamp²
7 letters: improve², advance², promote², rectify³
8 letters: embetter
9 letters: alleviate⁴, meliorate

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (amend² = 2 syllables).