amends

American  

[uh-mendz] / əˈmɛndz /

noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)

1. reparation or compensation for a loss, damage, or injury of any kind; recompense.

   Synonyms:

   restitution, redress

2. Obsolete. improvement; recovery, as of health.

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idioms

1. make amends, to compensate, as for an injury, loss, or insult.

   I tried to make amends for the misunderstanding by sending her flowers.

amends British  

/ əˈmɛndz /

noun

1. (functioning as singular) recompense or compensation given or gained for some injury, insult, etc

   to make amends

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amends More Idioms  

1. see make amends.

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Etymology

Origin of amends

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English amendes, from Middle French, plural of amende “reparation,” noun derivative of amender “to repair, correct errors in, improve the condition of”; amend

Explanation

So you blew the surprise party by mentioning it in passing to the birthday girl. Now, you have to do something to make amends, or reparations, to the boyfriend who worked all day to set up the party. When you make amends, you mend something you have damaged, like a deal, or relationship. Maybe, your cupcake shop was panned by a food critic in the paper, but he never went to your store, he went to that awful cupcake shop across the street. The critic should make amends by printing a retraction.

Example Sentences

In an advert in the Wall Street Journal headlined "To Those I've Hurt", West said he knew he had to make amends.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

Those that do so, he said in an interview, could expect his help to “make amends with the federal government and us.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

Lindsay has made amends with the franchise since as she cheered Paul on during the special, advising, “We’re here to make her comfortable, to keep it real.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026

He apologized at a New Hampshire synagogue, and ahead of a second presidential bid four years later, he worked to make amends with the Jewish community.

From Salon • Feb. 19, 2026

Here w'as an opportunity to make amends for leaving home without telling anyone.

From "Where the Red Fern Grows" by Wilson Rawls

Related Words

• apology
• redress
• reparation
• restitution