Meanings
plural ameliorations · alternative archaic melioration
- countableuncountableThe act of making better.
The tumult was over, and all things returned to their old place; and the abuse remained without remedy, and the wrong without redress. Ah! if the doctrine of amelioration be true, what a mighty debt does the future owe to the past!
1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XXXII, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 262Antonyms: deterioration
- countableuncountablehuman sciencesThe process by which a term gains a more positive connotation over time.
Antonyms: pejoration
- countableuncountablehuman sciencesAn ameliorative change of a concept or a repertoire of concepts.
pre-amelioration
1 more example
post-amelioration
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe act of making better.
nounAn improvement.
nounThe process by which a term gains a more positive connotation over time.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe act of relieving ills and changing for the better
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Middle Frenchamelioracion
- Middle Englishamelioracioun
- Englishamelioration
From Middle English amelioracioun, from Middle French amelioracion and probably partly ameliorate + -ion.
More words from Middle English, Middle French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian подобряване, подобрение
- подобряване (podobrjavane)act of making better
- подобрение (podobrenie)improvement
Catalan millora
- milloraact of making better
Danish forbedre, forbedring
- forbedreact of making better
- forbedringimprovement
Finnish parannus, kohennus
- parannusact of making better
- kohennusact of making better
- parannusimprovement
French amélioration
- améliorationimprovement
German Verbesserung, Besserung
- Verbesserungact of making better
- Besserungact of making better
- Meliorationimprovement
- Verbesserungimprovement
- Besserungimprovement
Italian miglioria, miglioramento
- miglioriaact of making better
- miglioramentoimprovement
Japanese 改良
- 改良 (kairyō)act of making better
Latin meliōrātiō
- meliōrātiōimprovement
Malay ameliorasi
- ameliorasiprocess in which a term gains a more positive connotation over time
Polish ulepszanie, amelioracja
- ulepszanieact of making better
- amelioracjaact of making better
- ulepszenieimprovement
- udoskonalenieimprovement
- uszlachetnienieimprovement
- melioryzacjaprocess in which a term gains a more positive connotation over time
Portuguese melhoramento, melhora
- melhoramentoact of making better
- melhoraimprovement
- melhoriaimprovement
Romanian ameliorare, îmbunătățire
- ameliorareact of making better
- îmbunătățireact of making better
Spanish mejoría, mejora
- mejoríaact of making better
- mejoraact of making better
- mejoramientoact of making better
- mejoraimprovement
Swedish förbättring, förbättring
- förbättringact of making better
- förbättringimprovement
Yiddish פֿאַרבעסערונג, פֿאַרבעסערונג
- פֿאַרבעסערונג (farbeserung)act of making better
- פֿאַרבעסערונג (farbeserung)improvement
- תּיקון (tikn)improvement
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with amelioration
Cite this entry
amelioration. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/amelioration
“amelioration.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/amelioration. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “amelioration,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/amelioration.
Source: amelioration on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.