well-being
Americannoun
Usage
What does well-being mean? The well-being of someone or something is its welfare or overall condition or state of health. A high level of well-being means that the overall condition is healthy and positive. Well-being can also refer to a specific aspect of one’s health, and it is often preceded by words like mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and the like. Well-being is most often applied to people and communities but it can also be applied to things, especially organizations or institutions, such as a nation, economy, or educational system. It is sometimes spelled without the hyphen (well being) or as one word (wellbeing). Example: I hate to call out sick so close to my deadline, but I’m trying to prioritize my well-being instead of constantly pushing myself.
Etymology
Origin of well-being
First recorded in 1605–15
Compare meaning
How does well-being compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Well-being is a state of health, happiness, and contentment. Everyone wants to enjoy well-being. When things are going well in a person's life, she feels a sense of well-being. Being healthy, happy, and having friends are all signs of well-being, while if you lose your job or become seriously ill, others will be concerned about your well-being. People in dangerous jobs like soldiers or police officers often find their well-being in jeopardy. The word well-being is also a philosophical term, especially important in various kinds of moral philosophy.
Vocabulary lists containing well-being
"Earth and Space"
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Psychology
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for April 17–April 23, 2021
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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.
The defendants never opened the box, according to Teymouri, who said Xuan and Zhang were “indifferent” to the well-being of their children.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026
Jason Jones, senior curator of animal well-being at Georgia Aquarium, says "breeding is a natural part of an animal's life".
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
Proximity to family also gives parents of young kids a sense of financial well-being: 85% of those parents expressed confidence in their finances, as opposed to 71% of those without a local support network.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
The researchers say future work could combine behavioral monitoring with physiological measurements to provide a more complete picture of how different feeding strategies affect animal welfare and well-being.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
The White House, one learns, operates with the express purpose of optimizing the well-being, efficiency, and overall power of one person—and that’s the president.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
