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ameliorate

[uh-meel-yuh-reyt, uh-mee-lee-uh-]

Example Sentences Origin

verb (used with object), verb (used without object), -rat·ed, -rat·ing.

to make or become better, more bearable, or more satisfactory; improve; meliorate.

Origin:
1760–70; a-⁵ + meliorate

Related forms

a·mel·io·ra·ble, adjective

a·mel·io·ra·ble·ness, noun

a·mel·io·rant, noun

a·mel·io·ra·tive, a·mel·io·ra·to·ry

[uh-meel-yer-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee, uh-mee-lee-uh-] , adjective

a·mel·io·ra·tor, noun

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un·a·mel·io·ra·ble, adjective

un·a·mel·io·rat·ed, adjective

un·a·mel·io·ra·tive, adjective

COLLAPSE

Can be confused: ameliorate, obviate, vitiate.

Synonyms
amend, better. See improve.

Antonyms
worsen.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Ameliorate is a GRE word you need to know.

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object

a brief account of an extensive subject; a summary

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Example Sentences

He wanted to know if the company had a suggestion for how to ameliorate this problem.

I'm very glad to see someone working to help ameliorate that situation.

By expanding our nonpolluting energy choices, we can ameliorate a variety of risks.

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Collins

World English Dictionary

ameliorate (əˈmiːljəˌreɪt)

—vb
	to make or become better; improve

[C18: from meliorate, influenced by French améliorer to improve, from Old French ameillorer to make better, from meillor better, from Latin melior]

usage Ameliorate is often wrongly used where alleviate is meant. Ameliorate is properly used to mean `improve', not `make easier to bear', so one should talk about alleviating pain or hardship, not ameliorating it

ameliorable

—*adj*

a'meliorant

—n

a'meliorative

—*adj*

a'meliorator

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

ameliorate

1767 (implied in ameliorating); see amelioration. The simpler form meliorate was used in M.E. Ameliorative is attested from 1809.

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"Although good early childhood programs can benefit all children, they are not a quick fix for all of society's ills—from crime in the streets to adolescent pregnancy, from school failure to unemployment. We must emphasize that good quality early childhood programs can help change the social and educational outcomes for many children, but they are not a panacea; they cannot ameliorate the effects of all harmful social and psychological environments."

-Barbara Bowman

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ameliorate

a·mel·io·rate