amendment

noun

amend·​ment ə-ˈmen(d)-mənt 

1

a

: the process of altering or amending a law or document (such as a constitution) by parliamentary or constitutional procedure

rights that were granted by amendment of the Constitution

b

: an alteration proposed or effected by this process

a constitutional amendment

2

: the act of amending something : correction

3

: a material (such as compost or sand) that aids plant growth indirectly by improving the condition of the soil

soil amendments

Did you know?

What is a constitutional amendment?

An amendment is essentially a correction. It comes in many varieties, up to and including the process of altering something through either parliamentary or constitutional procedure. In the United States, the word is often used specifically of a change to the U.S. Constitution. A constitutional amendment may be proposed by Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the Senate and the House of Representatives or through a constitutional convention with majority votes in two-thirds of state legislatures. Once it is ratified by Congress, it must be approved by three-fourths (i.e., 38 of 50) of the states.

Synonyms

• modification
• alteration
• correction

Examples of amendment in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Then people get exasperated, start talking about judicial supremacy, and try to chop the Court off at its knees by seeking traditional amendment instead. —Big Think, 10 Oct. 2025

Many in college sports are skeptical of the idea and lawmakers who have worked on the SCORE Act have said adding an SBA amendment to college sports legislation would grind the process to a halt. —Ralph D. Russo, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025

One contract amendment saw SANDAG pay HNTB another $325,000, even though the change required the company to do less work than it had previously been asked to perform, auditors found. —Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Oct. 2025

Marina Dimitrijevic, who chairs the city's finance committee, argued that taking such action on a substitue ordinance doesn't consider any amendments from the Common Council that could call for a decrease or increase to the wheel tax fee. —Vanessa Swales, jsonline.com, 9 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

see amend

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for amendment

• intendment

Kids Definition

amendment

noun

amend·​ment ə-ˈmen(d)-mənt 

1

: the act or process of amending especially for the better

2

: a change in wording or meaning especially in a law, bill, or motion

Legal Definition

amendment

noun

amend·​ment

1

: an act of amending

especially : an alteration in wording

amendments to cure the defect in the pleading

2

: an alteration proposed or put into effect by parliamentary or constitutional procedure

the Congress…shall propose amendments to this Constitution

—U.S. Constitution art. V