amend

C1 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /əˈmɛnd/ UK /əˈmɛnd/ See IPA manual

Freq #24845

Meanings

1

verb
To make formal changes to a document, law, or agreement.

Parliament voted to amend the law on data protection.
2

verb
To correct or improve something.

She amended her earlier statement after checking the facts.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to make formal changes to a... alter revise

2 verb · to correct or improve... correct improve remedy

More ameliorate

Word family

Forms amendedamending

Derived forms amendabilityamendableamendationamendfulreamend

Related forms emend

Appears in

Proverbs (1)

See all

Virtue pardons those she would amend

Simplified etymology

Amend goes back to Latin emendare, meaning “to free from faults” or “correct.” It is closely related to emend and is probably the word from which mend was shortened.

Etymology

From Middle English amenden, from Old French amender, from Latin ēmendō (“free from faults”), from ex (“from, out of”) + mendum (“fault”). Compare aphetic mend. Doublet of emend.

*mend- Proto-Indo-European amenden Middle English amender Old French ēmendō Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes Register & Style

External links

# amend

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /əˈmɛnd/
**IPA (UK):** /əˈmɛnd/
**Frequency rank:** 24845

## Meanings
1. To make formal changes to a document, law, or agreement.
2. To correct or improve something.

## Examples
- Parliament voted to amend the law on data protection.
- She amended her earlier statement after checking the facts.

## Synonyms
- ameliorate
- correct
- improve

## Derived Forms
- amendability
- amendable
- amendation
- amendful
- reamend

## Related Forms
- emend

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *mend-
- Root: amenden
- Root: amender
- Root: ēmendō

## Etymology
From Middle English amenden, from Old French amender, from Latin ēmendō (“free from faults”), from ex (“from, out of”) + mendum (“fault”). Compare aphetic mend. Doublet of emend.

## AI Etymology
Amend is from Middle English amenden, from Old French amender, from Latin ēmendō (“free from faults”), from ex (“from, out of”) + mendum (“fault”). Compare aphetic mend. Doublet of emend. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern verbal form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include *mend- (Proto-Indo-European), amenden (Middle English), amender (Old French), and ēmendō (Latin). Current senses include to make formal changes to a document, law, or agreement and to correct or improve something. The wider family includes derived forms such as amendability, amendable, amendation, amendful, and reamend and related words such as emend.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes
- Register & Style

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