remedial

adjective

re·​me·​di·​al ri-ˈmē-dē-əl 

1

: intended as a remedy

2

: concerned with the correction of faulty study habits and the raising of a pupil's general competence

remedial reading courses

also : receiving or requiring remedial instruction

remedial students

remedially

ri-ˈmē-dē-ə-lē 

adverb

Synonyms of remedial

• corrective
• reformative
• beneficial

Examples of remedial in a Sentence

Officials have pledged remedial action to repair damaged bridges.

Thirty percent of the new students need remedial classes in math.

He's taking a course in remedial reading.

Recent Examples on the Web

The suit alleges she was informed the officer resisted calls to attend remedial training going so far as to tell his fellow officers that Internal Affairs could open up an insubordination case on him. —Harrison Mantas, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 June 2026

These raging political debates help explain why the few hundred students who arrive at UC San Diego or UC Berkeley each year in need of remedial math instruction attract outsize attention. —Idrees Kahloon, The Atlantic, 9 June 2026

Plants are indeed more than remedial smellers. —Jenny Odell, Longreads, 2 June 2026

The four-season NBC sitcom about a high school teacher (Kaplan) who contends with his rowdy class of remedial students is best remembered now for providing a young John Travolta with his breakout role. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for remedial

• medial
• dorsomedial
• ventromedial
• postmedial

Kids Definition

remedial

adjective

re·​me·​di·​al ri-ˈmēd-ē-əl 

: intended to make something better

remedial measures

remedial classes

Medical Definition

remedial

adjective

re·​me·​di·​al ri-ˈmēd-ē-əl 

: affording a remedy : intended as a remedy

remedial surgery

remedially

-ē 

adverb

Legal Definition

remedial

adjective

re·​me·​di·​al ri-ˈmē-dē-əl 

1

a

: intended as or providing a remedy

b

: concerned with the correction, removal, or abatement of an evil, defect, or disease

remedial treatment of an inmate to improve behavior

a workers' compensation claimant who received remedial attention from a doctor

a remedial statute correcting the previous law

2

: of, relating to, or being a law enacted for the purpose of providing a method of enforcing an already existing substantive right : procedural