amend

American  

[uh-mend] / əˈmɛnd /

verb (used with object)

1. to alter, modify, rephrase, or add to or subtract from (a motion, bill, constitution, etc.) by formal procedure.

   Congress may amend the proposed tax bill.

2. to change for the better; improve.

   to amend one's ways.

3. to remove or correct faults in; rectify.

   Synonyms:

   correct, remedy, better, ameliorate

   Antonyms:

   worsen

---

verb (used without object)

1. to grow or become better by reforming oneself.

   He amends day by day.

amend British  

/ əˈmɛnd /

verb

1. to improve; change for the better

2. to remove faults from; correct

3. to alter or revise (legislation, a constitution, etc) by formal procedure

---

Related Words

Amend, emend both mean to improve by correcting or by freeing from error. Amend is the general term, used of any such correction in detail: to amend spelling, punctuation, grammar. Emend usually applies to the correction of a text in the process of editing or preparing for publication; it implies improvement in the sense of greater accuracy: He emended the text of the play by restoring the original reading.

Other Word Forms

• amendable adjective
• amender noun
• nonamendable adjective
• reamend verb
• unamendable adjective
• unamending adjective

Etymology

Origin of amend

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English amenden, from Old French amender, from Latin ēmendāre “to correct,” equivalent to ē- “out of, from” + mend(a) “blemish” + -āre infinitive suffix; e- ¹

Example Sentences

But that didn’t square with a Jan. 9 memo handed down by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that calls for AI labs to amend their defense contracts to allow “any lawful use” of their technology.

From MarketWatch

The staffer attached amended search results, but Missouri officials withheld the attachment from its response to a public records request and did not respond to a question about how many corrections were made.

From Salon

Authorities said the agreement effectively restricted the number of resellers of Apple products on Amazon’s Spanish website and issued a cease and desist order for the companies to amend their contracts.

From The Wall Street Journal

Soon after that, the city amended its salary ranges for department heads to keep up with inflation, said Matt Szabo, the city’s top budget analyst.

From Los Angeles Times

Warner reopened talks after Paramount amended its takeover bid, agreeing to pay the $2.8 billion termination fee Warner would owe Netflix if that deal collapsed.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• alter
• enhance
• lift
• modify
• rectify
• revise