Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- transitive verb To improve by critical editing.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To remove faults or blemishes from; free from fault; alter for the better; correct; amend.
- To amend by criticism of the text; improve the reading of: as, this edition of Virgil is greatly emended.
- Synonyms Improve, Better, etc. See
amend .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To purge of faults; to make better; to correct; esp., to make corrections in (a literary work); to alter for the better by textual criticism, generally verbal.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb transitive To
correct andrevise (a text).
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb make improvements or corrections to
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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When pressed by the reporter whether he cared about the opinion of the American people, instead of bristling at the suggestion, Dick Cheney tried to emend his response by saying "I think you can not be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls."
Dorian de Wind: Dick Cheney's Last Word Dorian de Wind 2011
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When pressed by the reporter whether he cared about the opinion of the American people, instead of bristling at the suggestion, Dick Cheney tried to emend his response by saying "I think you can not be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls."
Dorian de Wind: Dick Cheney's Last Word Dorian de Wind 2011
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He wrote to Allen Ginsberg on March 24, 1959, American College Dictionary sent me their big square definition of ‘beat generation’ and wanted to know if I would revise, emend or make a new one.
The Typewriter Is Holy Bill Morgan 2010
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He wrote to Allen Ginsberg on March 24, 1959, American College Dictionary sent me their big square definition of ‘beat generation’ and wanted to know if I would revise, emend or make a new one.
The Typewriter Is Holy Bill Morgan 2010
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Our choice is to emend the texts so that we can sing them wholeheartedly, and Richard Tarrant and Larry Rosenwald devised good solutions for Nova vobis gaudia and Letabundus.
Archive 2009-02-01 bls 2009
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If you've been in such relationships yourself, how would you expand or emend my taxonomy?
Archive 2009-02-01 Flavia 2009
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(That could also help you emend - that is right, not amend - your snorky BHO comments)
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Sometimes, I point out such examples to my students in religious studies, in order to show them the difference between scholarship and dogmatics: we scholars like to emend our conclusions in light of new evidence or fresh arguments.
Ferule & Fescue Flavia 2009
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My experiences from the past few weeks in this city, whose quiet yet energetic design once lured monks and monkeys alike to its riverbanks, has forced me to emend the saying: If not me, then surely me.
First Lives 2009
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Our choice is to emend the texts so that we can sing them wholeheartedly, and Richard Tarrant and Larry Rosenwald devised good solutions for Nova vobis gaudia and Letabundus.
More about bls 2009
reesetee commented on the word emend
This always comes in handy at my job. :-)
July 12, 2007
slumry commented on the word emend
I try to emend my ways, but. . .
July 12, 2007
uselessness commented on the word emend
Jeez, all this time and THAT'S what we should have been doing to the Constitution! Is it too late to change?
July 12, 2007
slumry commented on the word emend
And speaking of emending, I have been trying to think of the technical word that describes this howler:
I was editing a piece of writing for someone near and dear to me, and had a hard time convincing him that "Installing (you name the software) in a nutshell." was not a good header. The defense was reference to the series of "In a Nutshell" books.
It is a pretty funny image, I must say. Every time I think of it I laugh-groan.
July 12, 2007
slumry commented on the word emend
Whose constitution? How's yer constitution?
July 12, 2007
uselessness commented on the word emend
Eh, I'm pretty weak in that department. I should take more vitamins, or eat fewer frozen dinners. Maybe both. I'm downright unconstitutional.
July 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word emend
And you're calling Homeland Security on me? Hmph.
July 12, 2007
uselessness commented on the word emend
I'm a libertarian, you think I care about you? ;-)
July 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word emend
Libertarian, Presbyterian...what do I care? I cut TAGS off stuff, pal!
July 12, 2007
seanahan commented on the word emend
Is there some connotational difference between emend and amend? Likewise, is there some difference between emendable and amenable?
July 12, 2007
slumry commented on the word emend
I can't say in terms of etymology. However, in practice amend seems to be the more general term, meaning to improve to to rectify something. I think emend is usually more specific to editing text.
July 12, 2007
slumry commented on the word emend
And U, u had best amend your constitution while there is time! It's for your own good, you know. ;-)
July 12, 2007
uselessness commented on the word emend
I need to find a significant other who can cook, or I'm a lost cause. My diet is unhealthy, my budget worse!
July 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word emend
Yes, to amend something is to alter it (usually for the better); to emend is to correct, especially printed text. Amend derives from the old French "to free from fault," and I think emend derives from both Latin and that same French root.
Seanahan, I think the original meaning of amenable was "to bring before" or "to lead," interpreted as answerable to laws or jurisdictions. Somewhere along the way, the meaning shifted a bit to become "disposed to answer or respond."
July 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word emend
U, that's a good course of action. Take it from me. ;-)
July 12, 2007
uselessness commented on the word emend
Sounds about right to me. On at least a connotative level, I think amend means to add to something, with the goal of improving it; but emend means to change it more radically, dicing it to bits if necessary, in order to fix it completely.
July 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word emend
Dicing--I like that description!
July 12, 2007
uselessness commented on the word emend
Probably because it reminds you of cutting tags off pillows!
July 12, 2007
reesetee commented on the word emend
I have scissors and a red pen, and I'm not afraid to use them! ;-)
July 12, 2007
johnmperry commented on the word emend
Amend just means to change (for better, for worse). Emend means to put right.
June 17, 2008