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mend
7 dictionary results for: Mend
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
mend       [mend] Pronunciation Key
–verb (used with object)
1.to make (something broken, worn, torn, or otherwise damaged) whole, sound, or usable by repairing: to mend old clothes; to mend a broken toy.
2.to remove or correct defects or errors in.
3.to set right; make better; improve: to mend matters.
–verb (used without object)
4.to progress toward recovery, as a sick person.
5.(of broken bones) to grow back together; knit.
6.to improve, as conditions or affairs.
–noun
7.the act of mending; repair or improvement.
8.a mended place.
—Idioms
9.mend sail, Nautical. to refurl sails that have been badly furled. Also, mend the furl.
10.on the mend,
a.recovering from an illness.
b.improving in general, as a state of affairs: The breach between father and son is on the mend.
[Origin: 1150–1200; ME menden, aph. var. of amend]

—Related forms
mend·a·ble, adjective

—Synonyms 1. fix, restore, retouch. Mend, darn, patch mean to repair something and thus renew its usefulness. Mend is a general expression that emphasizes the idea of making whole something damaged: to mend a broken dish, a tear in an apron. Darn and patch are more specific, referring particularly to repairing holes or rents. To darn is to repair by means of stitches interwoven with one another: to darn stockings. To patch is to cover a hole or rent (usually) with a piece or pieces of similar material and to secure the edges of these; it implies a more temporary or makeshift repair than the others: to patch the knees of trousers, a rubber tire. 2. rectify, amend, emend. 3. ameliorate, meliorate. 4. heal, recover, amend.
—Antonyms 1. ruin, destroy, 4. die, sicken.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
mend       (měnd)  Pronunciation Key 
v.   mend·ed, mend·ing, mends

v.   tr.
  1. To make repairs or restoration to; fix.
  2. To reform or correct: mend one's ways.

v.   intr.
    1. To improve in health or condition: The patient is mending well.
    2. To heal: The bone mended in a month.
  2. To make repairs or corrections.

n.  
  1. The act of mending: did a neat mend on the sock.
  2. A mended place: You can't tell where the mend is.


[Middle English menden, short for amenden, to amend; see amend.]

mend'a·ble adj., mend'er n.
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
mend 
c.1200, "to free from sin or fault, improve morally," from an aphetic form of O.Fr. amender (see amend). Meaning "to fix something torn or broken" is from 1362; that of "to regain health" is from 1500.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
mend

noun
1. sewing that repairs a worn or torn hole (especially in a garment); "her stockings had several mends" 
2. the act of putting something in working order again [syn: repair] 

verb
1. restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken; "She repaired her TV set"; "Repair my shoes please" [syn: repair] [ant: break] 
2. heal or recover; "My broken leg is mending" 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

mend

In addition to the idioms beginning with mend, also see on the mend.


The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Mend

Mend\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mended; p. pr. & vb. n. Mending.] [Abbrev. fr. amend. See Amend.]

1. To repair, as anything that is torn, broken, defaced, decayed, or the like; to restore from partial decay, injury, or defacement; to patch up; to put in shape or order again; to re-create; as, to mend a garment or a machine.

2. To alter for the better; to set right; to reform; hence, to quicken; as, to mend one's manners or pace.

The best service they could do the state was to mend the lives of the persons who composed it. --Sir W. Temple.

3. To help, to advance, to further; to add to.

Though in some lands the grass is but short, yet it mends garden herbs and fruit. --Mortimer.

You mend the jewel by the wearing it. --Shak.

Syn: To improve; help; better; emend; amend; correct; rectify; reform.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Mend

Mend\, v. i. To grow better; to advance to a better state; to become improved. --Shak.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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