mend

[ mend ]

/ mɛnd /

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See synonyms for: mend / mended / mending / mendable on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to make (something broken, worn, torn, or otherwise damaged) whole, sound, or usable by repairing: to mend old clothes; to mend a broken toy.

to remove or correct defects or errors in.

to set right; make better; improve: to mend matters.

verb (used without object)

to progress toward recovery, as a sick person.

(of broken bones) to grow back together; knit.

to improve, as conditions or affairs.

noun

the act of mending; repair or improvement.

a mended place.

OTHER WORDS FOR mend

1 fix, restore, retouch.

2 rectify, amend, emend.

3 ameliorate, ameliorate.

4 heal, recover; amend.

See synonyms for mend on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR mend

1 ruin, destroy,

4 die, sicken.

See antonyms for mend on Thesaurus.com

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about mend

mend sail, Nautical. to refurl sails that have been badly furled.Also mend the furl .

on the mend,

recovering from an illness.
improving in general, as a state of affairs: The breach between father and son is on the mend.

Origin of mend

1150–1200; Middle English menden, aphetic variant of amend

synonym study for mend

1. Mend, darn, patch mean to repair something and thus renew its usefulness. Mend is a general expression that emphasizes the idea of making whole something damaged: to mend a broken dish, a tear in an apron. Darn and patch are more specific, referring particularly to repairing holes or tears. To darn is to repair by means of stitches interwoven with one another: to darn stockings. To patch is to cover a hole or tear, usually with a piece or pieces of similar material and to secure the edges of these; it implies a more temporary or makeshift repair than the others: to patch the knees of trousers, a rubber tire.

OTHER WORDS FROM mend

mend·a·ble, adjectivere·mend, verbun·mend·a·ble, adjectiveun·mend·ed, adjective

well-mended, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mend in a sentence

Therefore there was enmity at Peckham, and the stockings of those infants lay unmended in the basket.
Orley Farm|Anthony Trollope
And in spite of all their efforts they saw that even then a few leaks would have to go unmended.
The Tale of Timothy Turtle|Arthur Scott Bailey
The German child learns that it must never wear a soiled or an unmended garment or have untidy hair.
Home Life in Germany|Mrs. Alfred Sidgwick
Many more houses had been smashed, and unmended shell holes were seen in the roads.
On the Fringe of the Great Fight|George G. Nasmith

Houses, churches, aqueducts went to ruin; roads were left unmended, rivers undiked.
A Short History of Italy|Henry Dwight Sedgwick

British Dictionary definitions for mend

mend

/ (mɛnd) /

verb

(tr) to repair (something broken or unserviceable)

to improve or undergo improvement; reform (often in the phrase mend one's ways)

(intr) to heal or recover

(intr) (of conditions) to improve; become better

(tr) Northern English to feed or stir (a fire)

noun

the act of repairing

a mended area, esp on a garment

on the mend becoming better, esp in health

Derived forms of mend

mendable, adjectivemender, noun

Word Origin for mend

C12: shortened from amend

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with mend

mend

In addition to the idioms beginning with mend

mend one's fences
mend one's ways

also see:

on the mend

mend

OTHER WORDS FOR mend

OPPOSITES FOR mend

Idioms about mend

Origin of mend

synonym study for mend

OTHER WORDS FROM mend

Words related to mend

How to use mend in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mend

Derived forms of mend

Word Origin for mend

Other Idioms and Phrases with mend