amendment

amendment — noun

1. a correction or small change made to the wording of a document, contract, or pro

1.nounC2
Definition

a correction or small change made to the wording of a document, contract, or proposal, or the act of making that kind of change

Example

The editor suggested one amendment to the final contract before signing.

amendment to + document

After lunch, the board approved several amendments to the safety policy.

approve amendments to a policy

Common collocations
  • draft an amendment
  • an amendment to the contract
  • a minor amendment
  • approve an amendment
Synonyms
  • revision

    often suggests a fuller reworking of a document, not just one change

  • correction

    usually focuses on fixing something wrong rather than improving wording

  • alteration

    broader and more formal, and can describe physical changes too

  • edit

    common for general work on writing, not only one specific change

Usage Note

Often followed by `to` when you name the document or section being changed, as in `an amendment to the contract`. Unlike sense 2, this sense can describe ordinary changes in private documents as well as official proposals.

Common Mistakes

We made an amendment on the contract.
We made an amendment to the contract.
Use `to` for the document being changed.
The teacher gave an amendment to my essay.
The teacher suggested an amendment to my essay.
An amendment is the change itself, not general feedback.

2. an official change, or a plan for one, to a law, bill, or constitution

2.nounC2
Definition

an official change, or a plan for one, to a law, bill, or constitution

Example

Senators debated the amendment for three hours before the vote.

debate an amendment before voting

The court case challenged an amendment to the state constitution.

amendment to + constitution

Common collocations
  • propose an amendment
  • pass an amendment
  • a constitutional amendment
  • an amendment to the bill
Synonyms
  • revision

    can be similar, but is less strongly tied to formal legal procedure

  • provision

    means a rule or section inside a law, not necessarily a change to one

  • rider

    in US politics, a rider is an extra measure attached to a bill

Antonyms
  • repeal

    removes a law or rule instead of changing it

Usage Note

Usually used for changes handled by a legislature, parliament, or constitutional process. Distinguish this from sense 1, which can refer to routine changes in contracts, reports, and other ordinary documents.

Common Mistakes

The city passed an amendment of the parking law.
The city passed an amendment to the parking law.
The usual preposition is `to`.
The company announced a new amendment to its holiday form.
The company announced a revision to its holiday form.
This sense is for formal legal or constitutional changes.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

For noun/1, `amendment` usually means one particular change added to a text, contract, or proposal. `Revision` often suggests a larger reworking of the whole document. `Correction` is narrower and stresses fixing a mistake. `Alteration` is broader and more formal, and it can describe changes to things other than writing. `Edit` is the most general everyday word for changing writing, and it is often used for the overall process rather than one named change. You might say, `The lawyer proposed an amendment to clause 4,` but `The report needs a full revision before publication.`

revision ↗correction ↗alterationedit ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • draft amendment
  • proposed amendment

Phrases

  • make an amendment
  • introduce an amendment

Prepositions

  • amendment to

Etymology

LatinAnglo-FrenchEnglish

Amendment comes from `amend`, which entered English through Anglo-French from Latin `emendare`, meaning to correct faults or make something better. The noun developed to name both the act of correcting and the specific change that is added.