1
as in repairs
to put into good shape or working order again
that shirt will be as good as new when I'm finished mending it
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in recovers
to become healthy and strong again after illness or weakness
she's mending after a particularly nasty bout of the flu
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3
as in heals
to restore to a healthy condition
mended the broken plant so that it was soon thriving again
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4
as in compensates
to make up for (an offense)
the proverb "least said, soonest mended" should be heeded by anyone tempted to angrily blurt out things they really don't mean
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5
as in improves
to change one's behavior or character for the better
everyone's written her off as a liar and a thief, but I say it's never too late to mend
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6
as in cures
to bring about recovery from
the old adage that only time can mend a broken heart
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mends
The money helps to keep its doors open, fund church programs and mends the spirit of its congregation, the church wrote.
—
Ishani Desai, Sacbee.com, 23 Oct. 2025
Ishani Desai, Sacbee.com, 23 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mends
Verb
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The new material repairs itself after sustaining damage, even at extremely low temperatures.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Jan. 2026
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The Olive and June product can also be applied daily to bare nails as an intensive strengthening treatment that not only fortifies your claws, but also repairs ridges, discoloration, and pesky peeling along the way.—
Kyra Surgent,
InStyle,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Ensure the mix has good airflow, give the orchid plenty of bright, indirect light, and hold off on fertilizing until the orchid recovers.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
20 Jan. 2026
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Thankfully, Percy recovers by using the fleece to heal his wound.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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After a bloody final battle, Clarisse (Dior Goodjohn) finally completes her quest and heals Thalia’s tree with the Golden Fleece.—
Katie Campione,
Deadline,
24 Jan. 2026
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In following her to this point, however, this long-game project gives remarkable dimension and particularity to the kind of migrant story often only told in journalistic generalities — showing, year on year, how time heals some wounds, opens others, and creates plenty of its own.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
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On Monday, Nichols introduced an update to Idaho’s existing law that compensates crime victims if the perpetrator reaches a financial agreement to tell their story.—
Kevin Fixler
January 27,
Idaho Statesman,
27 Jan. 2026
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The system compensates for the Earth's rotation by counter-spinning the sensor while the telescope follows the sky, keeping everything rock-steady.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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This method improves sun exposure and airflow in steep terrain.—
Emily Price,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
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But the impact won’t be meaningful unless the accuracy of the models improves.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The movie, a result of Cook’s wild imagination and British legends, is a horror fantasy drama set in 1893 about Betty Lutey (Beatie Edney), while barred from studying medicine, cures someone with Tuberculosis with a mermaid’a cursed pearl comb.—
James Russell,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Oct. 2025
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Her father, Raúl, once a hopeful biotechnologist, now pours his fear into strange, homemade cures no one else trusts.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Their defensive group might be the best in the tournament, and the emergence of Leo Carlsson as an elite first-line center over the last few months fixes the roster’s most significant long-term issue.—
Sean Gentille,
New York Times,
2 Jan. 2026
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There’s no final scene where everything magically fixes itself.—
Larry Magid,
Mercury News,
25 Dec. 2025
Verb
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The charitable series, formerly starring LeAnne Rimes and Luke Grimes, ensures 15-percent of ticket proceeds go to the Saving Grace Equine Healing Foundation that rescues and rehabilitates horses.—
Demetrius Simms,
Robb Report,
15 Jan. 2026
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In total, the Ventana Wildlife Society — a group that traps, breeds and rehabilitates the vultures for release into the wild — has tracked 30 different condors that took multiple trips to parts of Alameda and Contra Costa counties sometime in the past two years.—
Kyle Martin,
Mercury News,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mends. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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