healthy
Americanadjective
-
healthier,
comparative
-
healthiest
superlative
-
possessing or enjoying good health or a sound and vigorous mentality.
a healthy body;
a healthy mind.
- Antonyms:
- sick
-
pertaining to or characteristic of good health or a sound and vigorous mind.
a healthy appearance;
healthy attitudes.
-
conducive to good health; healthful.
healthy recreations.
- Synonyms:
- nourishing, nutritious
-
eligible for the Food and Drug Administration's label certifying that a food is suitable for helping consumers achieve a total diet that conforms to dietary recommendations.
-
prosperous or sound.
a healthy business.
-
Informal. fairly large.
I bought a healthy number of books.
adjective
-
enjoying good health
-
functioning well or being sound
the company's finances are not very healthy
-
conducive to health; salutary
-
indicating soundness of body or mind
a healthy appetite
-
informal considerable in size or amount
a healthy sum
Synonym Usage
Healthy, healthful, salubrious, salutary, wholesome refer to the promotion of health. Healthy, while applied especially to what possesses health, is also applicable to what is conducive to health: a healthy climate; not a healthy place to be. Healthful and salubrious are applied chiefly to what is conducive to health: healthful diet or exercise; a salubrious impact on mental outlook. Salutary suggests something that is conducive to well-being generally, as well as beneficial in preserving or in restoring health: salutary effects; to take salutary measures. It is used also to indicate moral benefit: to have a salutary fear of devious behavior. Wholesome has connotations of attractive freshness and purity; it applies to what is good for one, physically, morally, or both: wholesome food; wholesome influences or advice.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of healthy
Explanation
Healthy means having good health. It's the opposite of sick, but also can mean "doing well" in a general sense. You can have a healthy attitude, or be served a healthy portion of food. Health is one of the most fundamental human concerns. The ubiquitous "How are you?" is often asking after a person's health. To remember healthy think of the proverb: "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy and wealthy and wise."
Vocabulary lists containing healthy
List 1
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Commonly Confused Words, List 3
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Commonly Confused Words, List 6
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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:
"It is urgent to take the next steps in the recovery process to keep people healthy and avoid a spiral into poverty."
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
The same mechanism that protects healthy cells could also have a less helpful consequence.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
“We do not need to avoid mentioning competition, but our competition should be a healthy one, and should be kept within bounds,” the Chinese president said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026
The Spaniard said at the US Open that he will miss some tournaments in the future to allow himself to be "mentally and physically healthy".
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
“Remember what Vern said? Your mom was looking for a range of different ages. A healthy community has young sharks, middle-aged sharks, and old sharks.”
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
"It's had a real impact on my day to day life," he says, "improving my mood and making me feel generally healthier."
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
Those airlines with healthier balance sheets may have an easier time weathering the difficulties.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
"It makes us healthier, walking in the forest," said the 72-year-old.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
The researchers found that their mitochondria, the structures responsible for much of a cell's energy production, behave differently from those in healthier cells.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
“That’s better,” the queen says dutifully, and the king says, as if he couldn’t see well before, “You look healthier today.”
From "Grendel" by John Gardner
The disadvantages of Broadcom’s AI-chip strategy are also coming into sharper focus as the financial capacity of the healthiest tech companies gets stretched.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
Avoiding drinking during pregnancy is the healthiest choice for both you and your baby.
From Slate ● Aug. 27, 2026
The healthiest part of the labor market is, well, healthcare.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 4, 2026
It was also when the team was largely its healthiest.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
I hauled buckets of water to the potato patch, drenching the plants which looked healthiest.
From "Fever 1793" by Laurie Halse Anderson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
