Meanings
comparative more well-meaning · superlative most well-meaning
- With good intentions, often used to reflect positively on a negative outcome or situation.
The professor is well-meaning enough, but he usually ruins things one way or another.
1 more example
In the first scene, he bites the arm of a well-meaning counselor at the group home and dashes out of the building, all in a vain attempt to locate the father who abandoned him.
2012 March 15, Scott Tobias, “The Kid With A Bike [Review]”, in AV Club
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivenot unfriendly or threatening
adjectivemarked by good intentions though often producing unfortunate results
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Ancient Greek εὐφρονέων
- εὐφρονέων (euphronéōn)with good intentions
Bulgarian доброжелателен
- доброжелателен (dobroželatelen)with good intentions
Czech s dobrými úmysly
- s dobrými úmyslywith good intentions
Dutch goedbedoeld
- goedbedoeldwith good intentions
Esperanto bonintenca
- bonintencawith good intentions
Finnish hyväntahtoinen, hyvää tarkoittava
- hyväntahtoinenwith good intentions
- hyvää tarkoittavawith good intentions
French bien intentionné
- bien intentionnéwith good intentions
German gutmeinender, gutwillig
- gutmeinenderwith good intentions
- gutwilligwith good intentions
- gut gemeintwith good intentions
Hungarian jóakaratú, jóhiszemű
- jóakaratúwith good intentions
- jóhiszeműwith good intentions
- jóindulatúwith good intentions
- jó szándékúwith good intentions
Italian benintenzionato
- benintenzionatowith good intentions
Norwegian Bokmål velmenende
- velmenendewith good intentions
Polish o dobrych intencjach
- o dobrych intencjachwith good intentions
Portuguese bem-intencionado
- bem-intencionadowith good intentions
Swedish välmenande, välment
- välmenandewith good intentions
- välmentwith good intentions
Yiddish מיט גוטע כּוונות
- מיט גוטע כּוונות (mit gute kavones)with good intentions
Cite this entry
well-meaning. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/well-meaning
“well-meaning.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/well-meaning. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “well-meaning,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/well-meaning.
Source: well-meaning on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.