Synonyms of ameliorate

ameliorate

verb

ə-ˈmēl-yə-ˌrāt 

as in to improve

to make better

social legislation that must be given credit for ameliorating the lot of millions of deprived people

Synonyms & Similar Words

• improve
• enhance
• remedy
• remediate
• better
• help
• enrich
• refine
• amend
• upgrade
• perfect
• meliorate
• reinforce
• rectify
• intensify
• strengthen
• correct
• rehabilitate
• reform
• revise
• refurbish
• fine-tune
• fortify
• boost
• reenforce
• rework
• edit
• emend
• revamp
• fine
• polish
• hone
• beef (up)
• redraft
• rehab
• retouch
• touch up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• worsen
• impair
• harm
• hurt
• damage
• injure
• reduce
• vitiate
• tarnish
• spoil
• diminish
• lessen
• flaw
• blight
• disfigure
• mar
• deface
• lower
• endamage
• blemish

Synonym Chooser

How is the word ameliorate distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of ameliorate are better, help, and improve. While all these words mean "to make more acceptable or to bring nearer a standard," ameliorate implies making more tolerable or acceptable conditions that are hard to endure.

tried to ameliorate the lives of people in the tenements

When is help a more appropriate choice than ameliorate?

The meanings of help and ameliorate largely overlap; however, help implies a bettering that still leaves room for improvement.

a coat of paint would help that house

How are the words improve and better related as synonyms of ameliorate?

Both improve and better are general and interchangeable and apply to what can be made better whether it is good or bad.

measures to further improve the quality of medical care

immigrants hoping to better their lot

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of ameliorate

In the painful but necessary 2013 closings, no effort was made to replace shuttered schools that had served as neighborhood anchors or to ameliorate the harmful effects of closings. —Forrest Claypool, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2025

Now, the Port will be required to ameliorate the issue by changing its management of stormwater and groundwater. —Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 17 June 2025

Pick up a side hustle One thing that can help ameliorate job loss specifically is finding new ways to use existing skills through things like side hustles or volunteering, says Anvari Clark. —Katia Riddle, NPR, 28 Apr. 2025

Moving to multicore processors helped ameliorate that issue for a time. —IEEE Spectrum, 24 May 2023

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