mend

/mɛnd/

/mɛnd/

Other forms: mended; mending; mends

When you mend something, you fix it or make it better. If you can mend your broken lamp, then it will shine again. If not you'll have to sit in the dark.

The word mend was originally used as a religious term, meaning to free a person from sin, usually through repentance and good deeds. Mend has come to refer to fixing something that is broken. A mechanic might mend a broken car, or a seamstress might mend a torn dress. The word also frequently relates health and healing. Someone recovering from a long bout of the flu is said to be "on the mend." But as the song goes, "How can you mend a broken heart?"

Definitions of mend

1. verb

   restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken
   synonyms: bushel, doctor, fix, furbish up, repair, restore, touch on

   types:

   fiddle, tinker

   try to fix or mend

   fill

   plug with a substance

   patch, piece

   repair by adding pieces

   cobble

   repair or mend

   point, repoint

   repair the joints of bricks

   trouble-shoot, troubleshoot

   solve problems

   patch, patch up

   mend by putting a patch on

   resole, sole

   put a new sole on

   revamp, vamp

   provide (a shoe) with a new vamp

   heel, reheel

   put a new heel on

   darn

   repair by sewing

   close, fill up

   fill or stop up

   type of:

   ameliorate, amend, better, improve, meliorate

   make better
2. verb

   heal or recover
   “My broken leg is mending”

   synonyms: heal

   type of:

   ameliorate, better, improve, meliorate

   get better
3. noun

   sewing that repairs a worn or torn hole (especially in a garment)
   “her stockings had several mends”

   synonyms: darn, patch

   type of:

   sewing, stitchery

   needlework on which you are working with needle and thread
4. noun

   the act of putting something in working order again
   synonyms: fix, fixing, fixture, mending, repair, reparation

   types:

   darning

   the act of mending a hole in a garment with crossing threads

   patching

   the act of mending a hole in a garment by sewing a patch over it

   care, maintenance, upkeep

   activity involved in maintaining something in good working order

   band aid, quick fix, quickie, quicky

   hurried repair

   restoration

   the act of restoring something or someone to a satisfactory state

   reconstruction

   the activity of constructing something again

   restitution

   the act of restoring something to its original state

   re-establishment

   restoration to a previous state

   camera care

   keeping a camera in good working order

   car care

   keeping a car in good working order

   inspection and repair, overhaul, service

   periodic maintenance on a car or machine

   gentrification

   a process in which middle-class and wealthy people move into and lower income areas and rebuild or improve properties (resulting in the displacement of low-income residents)

   reclamation, rehabilitation, renewal

   the conversion of wasteland into land suitable for use of habitation or cultivation

   makeover

   a complete reconstruction and renovation of something

   reassembly, refabrication

   assembling again

   re-formation, regeneration

   forming again (especially with improvements or removal of defects); renewing and reconstituting

   rebuilding

   building again

   pump priming

   introducing water into a pump to improve the seal and start the water flowing

   scheduled maintenance

   maintenance at a regularly scheduled time

   steam fitting

   care (installation and maintenance) of equipment for ventilating or heating or refrigerating

   rehabilitation

   the restoration of someone to a useful place in society

   reinstatement

   the act of restoring someone to a previous position

   rejuvenation

   the act of restoring to a more youthful condition

   type of:

   improvement

   the act of improving something