well-being

well-being — noun

1. the general state of being healthy, happy, and comfortable in your life — includ

1.nounB1
Definition

the general state of being healthy, happy, and comfortable in your life — including your body, mind, and social situation.

Example

Hassan started running every morning, and within weeks his sense of well-being grew noticeably.

collocation: sense of well-being

The clinic offers free check-ups aimed at the overall well-being of young children.

collocation: well-being of [group]

Common collocations
  • sense of well-being
  • emotional well-being
  • mental well-being
  • physical well-being
  • overall well-being
  • well-being of children
  • well-being of employees
  • promote well-being
  • improve well-being
  • support well-being
  • affect well-being
Synonyms
  • welfare

    more formal and often used for government support or institutional care (social welfare, child welfare)

  • happiness

    focuses on emotional joy and satisfaction, while well-being is broader — it includes physical and social dimensions too

  • wellness

    modern, proactive term often used in health-program contexts (wellness center, wellness plan)

  • health

    narrower — refers mainly to physical or medical condition, not emotional or social factors

Antonyms
  • illness

    physical sickness, one aspect of poor well-being

  • misery

    extreme unhappiness or suffering

  • hardship

    difficult life conditions that damage well-being

Grammar Patterns

possessive + well-being

well-being of [group/individual]

Usage Note

Uncountable — do not say 'a well-being' or 'well-beings'. Frequently modified by adjectives that specify an area of life: emotional, physical, mental, psychological, social, financial.

Common Mistakes

Regular yoga improved my wellbeing.
Regular yoga improved my well-being.
The standard spelling uses a hyphen (well-being), though 'wellbeing' is also accepted in some dictionaries.
The doctor checked my well-being.
The doctor checked my health.
'well-being' is a broad, holistic state; for a medical examination, use 'health'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Well-being refers to a person's overall state of being healthy, happy, and content in life. Welfare overlaps but often carries institutional or financial connotations — social welfare, child welfare, or welfare benefits focus on material support rather than holistic health. Happiness emphasizes emotional joy and satisfaction, while well-being is broader, covering physical, mental, and social dimensions. Health is narrower and primarily describes physical or medical condition. Wellness is a modern, proactive term commonly used in lifestyle contexts — wellness programs, wellness centers — rather than describing a general state. For example: 'Yoga improved her well-being' suggests improvements in body, mind, and mood together; 'Yoga improved her health' points mainly to physical fitness; and 'Yoga improved her happiness' focuses on emotional uplift only.

welfare ↗happiness ↗wellness ↗health ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • sense of well-being
  • state of well-being
  • well-being of [someone]

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Formed by combining 'well' (from Old English 'wel', meaning in a good, satisfactory, or healthy manner) and 'being' (from Old English 'bēon', meaning existence or nature). The compound emerged in the 1600s as a translation of the Latin phrase 'bene esse' (literally 'well-being'), which philosophers contrasted with 'esse ipsum' (mere existence). It was used to describe not just survival, but a life lived in good condition.