Synonym Chooser

How is the word wholesome distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of wholesome are hale, healthy, robust, sound, and well. While all these words mean "enjoying or indicative of good health," wholesome implies appearance and behavior indicating soundness and balance.

a face with a wholesome glow

Where would hale be a reasonable alternative to wholesome?

Although the words hale and wholesome have much in common, hale applies particularly to robustness in old age.

still hale at the age of eighty

When is it sensible to use healthy instead of wholesome?

In some situations, the words healthy and wholesome are roughly equivalent. However, healthy implies full strength and vigor as well as freedom from signs of disease.

a healthy family

In what contexts can robust take the place of wholesome?

The synonyms robust and wholesome are sometimes interchangeable, but robust implies the opposite of all that is delicate or sickly.

a lively, robust little boy

When can sound be used instead of wholesome?

The meanings of sound and wholesome largely overlap; however, sound emphasizes the absence of disease, weakness, or malfunction.

a sound heart

When could well be used to replace wholesome?

While the synonyms well and wholesome are close in meaning, well implies merely freedom from disease or illness.

she has never been a well person

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of wholesome The trailer opens with scenes of a seemingly wholesome town as the Hanlon family moves in. Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 23 Sep. 2025 Standouts include Borit Gogae for a wholesome, country-style set meal; Mapo Dak Galbi for its assertive namesake stir-fry; MDK Noodles for deeply comforting kalguksu; Park’s BBQ for top-tier Korean barbecue; and Western Doma Noodles for japchae and kimchi jjigae. Emily Wilson, Bon Appetit Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025 Throughout the 1950s, Volkswagen’s Type 2 microbus was hardly a collectible, but rather a tradesman’s workhorse, or a wholesome weekend motel on wheels for families camping mostly across Europe and North America. Robert Ross, Robb Report, 19 Sep. 2025 The wholesome clip has viewers obsessed with the puppy, named Barney, who is just 4 months old. Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for wholesome
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wholesome
Adjective
  • Forest needed competition for Chris Wood, and the 24-year-old fits the bill as a senior Brazil international who has scored at a healthy rate back home.
    Tim Spiers, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
  • Scientists found that the latter combo reduced blood sugar spikes in healthy participants.
    Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Kerzka and the others did their best to comfort them, to bandage small wounds; the most critically injured were already at the hospital.
    Georgea Kovanis, Freep.com, 5 Oct. 2025
  • But in one of his best performances in an Arsenal shirt so far, Zubimendi quickly went about making a difference.
    Art de Roché, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • What is most appealing about YoungBoy is that his music, quite frankly, is the sound of a man who is very much not well.
    Jayson Buford, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2025
  • Beneath the surface, though, all is not well.
    Ian King, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • What began with cooking for a few friends quickly grew into a mission to help busy families and professionals enjoy nourishing meals without compromise, sparking a movement to make healthful eating easier and more meaningful across Arizona.
    Wyles Daniel, AZCentral.com, 2 Oct. 2025
  • In this healthful salad, Brussels sprouts are combined with apples, pears, pomegranate seeds, shallots and Dijon-vinegar dressing.
    Bethany Thayer, Freep.com, 27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • The Vanderbilt hospital is the only Level 1 pediatric trauma center within 150 miles, the top designation verified by the American College of Surgeons for around-the-clock specialists, a high volume of trauma cases, robust research and quality patient care.
    Beth Warren, Nashville Tennessean, 3 Oct. 2025
  • Griffin and Secretary of State Cole Jester stressed at Thursday's news conference that incidents of voter fraud are rare and that the state's election laws are some of the most robust in the country.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Wholesome.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wholesome. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.

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