well

1 of 5

noun

ˈwel 

1

a

: an issue of water from the earth : a pool fed by a spring

b

: source, origin

2

a

: a pit or hole sunk into the earth to reach a supply of water

b

: a shaft or hole sunk to obtain oil, brine, or gas

3

a

: an enclosure in the middle of a ship's hold to protect from damage and facilitate the inspection of the pumps

b

: a compartment in the hold of a fishing boat in which fish are kept alive

4

: an open space extending vertically through floors of a structure

5

a

: a space having a construction or shape suggesting a well for water

b

: the area behind a bar in which items used most frequently by a bartender are kept

6

a

: something resembling a well in being damp, cool, deep, or dark

b

: a deep vertical hole

c

: a source from which something may be drawn as needed

7

: a pronounced minimum of a variable in physics

a potential well

well

2 of 5

verb

welled; welling; wells

intransitive verb

1

: to rise to the surface and usually flow forth

tears welled from her eyes

2

: to rise like a flood of liquid

longing welled up in his breast

transitive verb

: to emit in a copious free flow

well

3 of 5

adverb

better ˈbe-tər  ; best ˈbest 

1

a

: in a good or proper manner : justly, rightly

b

: satisfactorily with respect to conduct or action

did well in math

works well under pressure

2

: in a kindly or friendly manner

spoke well of your idea

wished them well

3

a

: with skill or aptitude : expertly, excellently

paints well

b

: satisfactorily

the plan worked well

c

: with good appearance or effect : elegantly

carried himself well

4

: with careful or close attention : attentively

watch well what I do

5

: to a high degree

well deserved the honor

a well-equipped kitchen

—often used as an intensifier or qualifier

there are … vacancies pretty well all the time

—Listener

6

: fully, quite

well worth the price

7

a

: in a way appropriate to the facts or circumstances : fittingly, rightly

well said

b

: in a prudent manner : sensibly

—used with do

you would do well to reread the material

8

: in accordance with the occasion or circumstances : with propriety or good reason

cannot well refuse

the decision may well be questioned

9

a

: as one could wish : pleasingly

the idea didn't sit well with her

b

: with material success : advantageously

married well

10

a

: easily, readily

could well afford a new car

b

: in all likelihood : indeed

it may well be true

11

: in a prosperous or affluent manner

he lives well

12

: to an extent approaching completeness : thoroughly

after being well dried with a towel

13

: without doubt or question : clearly

well knew the penalty

14

: in a familiar manner

knew her well

15

: to a large extent or degree : considerably, far

well over a million

Good vs. Well: Usage Guide

Adverbial good has been under attack from the schoolroom since the 19th century. Insistence on well rather than good has resulted in a split in connotation: well is standard, neutral, and colorless, while good is emotionally charged and emphatic. This makes good the adverb of choice in sports.

"I'm seeing the ball real good" is what you hear

—Roger Angell

In such contexts as

listen up. And listen good

—Alex Karras

lets fly with his tomatoes before they can flee. He gets Clarence good

—Charles Dickinson

good cannot be adequately replaced by well. Adverbial good is primarily a spoken form; in writing it occurs in reported and fictional speech and in generally familiar or informal contexts.

well

4 of 5

interjection

1

—used to indicate resumption of discourse or to introduce a remark

they are, well, not quite what you'd expect

2

—used to express surprise or expostulation

well, what have we here?

well

5 of 5

adjective

1

a

: prosperous, well-off

b

: being in satisfactory condition or circumstances

2

: being in good standing or favor

3

: satisfactory, pleasing

all's well that ends well

4

: advisable, desirable

it might be well for you to leave

5

a

: free or recovered from infirmity or disease : healthy

he's not a well man

b

: completely cured or healed

the wound is nearly well

6

: pleasing or satisfactory in appearance

our garden looks well

—Conrad Aiken

7

: being a cause for thankfulness : fortunate

it is well that this has happened

8

of liquor : used for making mixed drinks when no branded alcohol is specified

also : made with well liquor

a well drink

Good vs. Well: Usage Guide

An old notion that it is wrong to say "I feel good" in reference to health still occasionally appears in print. The origins of this notion are obscure, but they seem to combine someone's idea that good should be reserved to describe virtue and uncertainty about whether an adverb or an adjective should follow feel. Today nearly everyone agrees that both good and well can be predicate adjectives after feel. Both are used to express good health, but good may connote good spirits in addition to good health.

Phrases

as well

1

: in addition : also

there were other features as well

2

: to the same extent or degree : as much

open as well to the poor as to the rich

3

: with equivalent, comparable, or more favorable effect

might just as well have stayed home

Synonyms

Noun

• cradle
• font
• fountain
• fountainhead
• origin
• root
• seedbed
• source
• spring
• wellspring

Adverb

• acceptably
• adequately
• all right
• alright
• creditably
• decently
• fine
• good
• middlingly
• nicely
• OK
• okay
• passably
• respectably
• satisfactorily
• serviceably
• so-so
• sufficiently
• tolerably

Interjection

• ah
• aha
• come on
• fie
• indeed
• my word
• no
• pshaw
• what
• why

Adjective

• able-bodied
• bouncing
• fit
• hale
• healthy
• hearty
• robust
• sound
• well-conditioned
• whole
• wholesome

Choose the Right Synonym for well

healthy, sound, wholesome, robust, hale, well mean enjoying or indicative of good health.

healthy implies full strength and vigor as well as freedom from signs of disease.

a healthy family

sound emphasizes the absence of disease, weakness, or malfunction.

a sound heart

wholesome implies appearance and behavior indicating soundness and balance.

a face with a wholesome glow

robust implies the opposite of all that is delicate or sickly.

a lively, robust little boy

hale applies particularly to robustness in old age.

still hale at the age of eighty

well implies merely freedom from disease or illness.

she has never been a well person

Examples of well in a Sentence

Noun

his quirkily dysfunctional family proved to be a bottomless well of inspiration for the novelist

the spot where the spring bubbles up to the surface and forms a deep well

Adverb

“How did everything go?” “It went well, thank you.”

She works well under pressure.

I did surprisingly well on my history test.

The company is doing well.

He has his own business and is doing well for himself.

You got a perfect score! Well done!

She sings and plays the guitar quite well.

The essay is well written.

He doesn't smoke or drink, and he eats well.

She doesn't treat her boyfriend very well.

Interjection

well, that is odd!

Adjective

The children are well again.

I don't feel very well.

You don't look so well.

I hope you get well soon.

I hope all is well with you and your family.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Free drinks are much harder to come by than in the past, especially for sports other than horse racing, and often require substantial bets just to get a free drink ticket, which is often good only for domestic beer or a well drink. —Larry Olmsted, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024

The safety standard for nitrates is 10 parts per million or less from the tap for drinking water, but people with private wells often find their nitrate levels are higher. —John Molseed, Twin Cities, 10 Dec. 2024

Verb

Tectonic Forces and a Giant Plume of Magma As these tectonic plates diverge, fissures in Earth's crust crack open, allowing magma to well up and spew lava onto the surface. —Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 30 Nov. 2024

His mix of bone-dry humour and innate decency are the perfect foil for the film's welling emotions. —The Week Uk, theweek, 21 Nov. 2024

Adverb

The police association's and department's Facebook pages include pictures from past years' toy drives as well. —Hannah Hudnall, USA TODAY, 21 Dec. 2024

In fact, there probably are scads of people who won’t mind shelling out a few more bucks, if only to see how many of their favorite survivors — well, continue to survive. —Joe Leydon, Variety, 20 Dec. 2024

Interjection

Without that, well, Pornhub’s next chapter is nothing more than a dream. —Jason Parham, WIRED, 9 Dec. 2024

Before December comes to a close, your celestial ruler, Venus, will also clash with Uranus in your sign, and things could get... well, interesting. —Valerie Mesa, People.com, 9 Dec. 2024

Adjective

The witch’s magic is still MIA, but her attitude is well and truly back. —Alison Herman, Variety, 19 Sep. 2024

In an interview with BBC Radio 4, Wilson’s cousin and bandmate Love, 83, assured fans that all is well, and that the latest legal decisions have not affected their bond. —Rachel Desantis, Peoplemag, 22 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English welle, wille "spring of water, pool formed by a spring, pit sunk into the earth to reach water," going back to Old English wælle (Anglian), wiell, wielle (West Saxon, later wille, wylle), going back to a Germanic base *waln(j)- (also *walj-?) with varying stem formations (whence also Old Frisian walla "spring, source," Middle Dutch wal, walle "a seething, boiling heat, spring or river of seething water") and with e-grade ablaut Old High German wella "wave, tide," Old Icelandic vella "boiling, bubbling mass," all nominal derivatives from the base of Germanic *walla- "to well up, seethe, bubble" — more at well entry 2

Note: Comparable nominal formations from Indo-European *u̯el(H)- "seethe, bubble" with zero-grade ablaut are Old Church Slavic vlĭna "wave," Russian volná (< *u̯l̥H-neh₂), Lithuanian vilnìs "wave" (< *u̯l̥H-ni-), Sanskrit ūrmí- "wave" (< *u̯l̥H-mi-).

Verb

Middle English wellen "to rise to the surface, bubble up, boil, seethe," probably in part verbal derivative of welle "spring of water, well entry 1," in part adaptation of the transitive verb wellen "to boil, curdle, melt (metal), refine," going back to Old English wellan, wyllan (< *wiellan) "to cause to boil," probably going back to Germanic *wall(j)an- (whence also Middle Dutch & Middle High German wellen "to make boil," Old Icelandic vella), causative from *wallan- "to well up, seethe, bubble," Class VII strong verb (whence Old English weallan "to boil, bubble up," Old Frisian walla, Old Saxon wallan "to blaze, boil up, well up," Old High German, "to boil up, well up"), a Germanic verbal base of uncertain origin, seen also with a zero-grade present without gemination in Gothic wulan "to seethe, spread (of an ulcer)"

Note: Both the Middle English Dictionary and the Oxford English Dictionary, third edition (OED), treat the two Middle English verbs wellen as simply the same verb; compare, however, J. de Vries (Nederlands Etymologisch Woordenboek), who treats Dutch wellen "to bubble up" (opborrelen) and wellen "to make boil, hammer white-hot metal together" (doen koken, gloeiende metalen aaneenhameren) in separate articles. The OED asserts that there is a range of dialect attestation of the verb (wællan, wellan, willan, wyllan), apparently on the basis of the few forms given in the citations (the imperatives wel, wyl and wæl in recipes): "In Old English the verb shows the expected reflex of the i-mutation of early Old English æ (West Germanic a) before ll, depending on dialect." But if this statement is based on a reconstruction of the immediate pre-Old English form and inflection of the verb, or its West Germanic predecessor, no such reconstruction is given. The etymology itself merely lists a group of supposed Germanic cognates, summarized by the statement "a causative formation < the same Germanic base as wall v.1 [i.e., Old English weallan]." — In addition to *wallan-, Germanic has an apparent e-grade strong verb *wellan-, seen in Old Saxon and Old High German biwellan "to stain, besmirch," Old Icelandic vella "to well over, boil," and probably Old English wollentēar "with streaming tears." Along with a series of nominal formations outside Germanic based on a zero-grade *u̯l̥H- (see note at well entry 1), the Germanic verbs would lead to an Indo-European base *u̯el(H)- "seethe, bubble." Some have seen this etymon as identical with a homonymous base meaning "to roll" (see welter entry 1), the view of H. Rix, et al. (Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2. Auflage, Wiesbaden, 2001). E. Seebold, on the other hand (Vergleichendes und etymologisches Wörterbuch der germanischen starken Verben, Mouton, 1970, p. 552) thinks the connection in sense is not so easily explained ("Wie diese Bedeutungsvielfalt zu erklären ist, bleibt unklar"; likewise Kluge-Seebold, 22. Auflage, s.v. wallen). Seebold points to the proximity of form and identical meaning of Lithuanian vérda, vìrti "to boil, seethe," Old Church Slavic vĭrěti.

Adverb

Middle English wel, going back to Old English, going back to Germanic *welō (whence Old Frisian wol, wel, wal "in a good manner," Old Saxon wola, wela, wala, Old High German wola, Old Norse vel, val), from an adjectival derivative of the base of *weljan- "to want" — more at will entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Interjection

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing well

• alive and well
• all's well that ends well
• all very well
• all well and good
• artesian well
• as well
• as well as
• blend well
• bloody well
• bode well
• closely/well observed
• damn well
• dang well
• darn well
• do well
• do well by (someone)
• dry well
• fare-thee-well
• fare-you-well
• full well
• hail-fellow-well-met
• jolly well
• just as well
• know full well
• leave/let well (enough) alone
• leave well alone
• leave well enough alone
• let well enough alone
• mean well
• might/may as well
• ne'er-do-well
• oil well
• pretty well
• ruddy well
• speak well/poorly for
• very well
• wear well
• well-adjusted
• well-advised
• well-appointed
• well-balanced
• well-behaved
• well-being
• well-beloved
• well-bred
• well-built
• well-conditioned
• well-connected
• well deck
• well-defined
• well-developed
• well-disposed
• well-documented
• well-done
• well-dressed
• well-earned
• well-endowed
• well/far along in years
• well-favored
• well-fed
• well-fixed
• well-found
• well-founded
• well-groomed
• well-grounded
• well-handled
• well-heeled
• well-hung
• well, I never
• well-informed
• well-intentioned
• well-kept
• well-kept secret
• well-knit
• well-known
• well-liked
• well-made
• well-mannered
• well-meaning
• well-meant
• well-nigh
• well-off
• well-oiled
• well-ordered
• well over
• well-placed
• well-preserved
• well-read
• well rid of
• well-rounded
• well-run
• well-set
• well spent
• well-spoken
• well-taken
• well-thought-of
• well-thought-out
• well-timed
• well-to-do
• well-tried
• well-trodden
• well-turned
• well versed
• well-wisher
• well-worn
• whatever one damn/damned well pleases
• wishing well
• wish someone well

Kids Definition

well

1 of 5 noun

ˈwel 

1

: a source of supply

was a well of information

2

: a hole made in the earth to reach a natural deposit (as of water, oil, or gas)

3

: an open space extending up through floors of a structure (as for a staircase)

4

: something suggesting a well

well

2 of 5 verb

: to rise to the surface and flow out

well

3 of 5 adverb

better ˈbet-ər  ; best ˈbest 

1

: so as to be right : in a satisfactory way

did well on the test

2

: in a friendly or generous way

they always speak well of you

3

: in a skillful or expert manner

plays the trumpet well

4

: by as much as possible : completely

we are well aware of the problem

5

: with reason or courtesy

cannot well refuse

6

: in such a way as to be pleasing : as one would wish

everything has gone well this week

7

: without trouble

we could well afford it

8

: in a thorough manner

shake well before using

9

: in a familiar manner

knew them well

10

: by quite a lot

was well ahead

well over a million

well

4 of 5 interjection

1

—used to begin a conversation or continue one that was interrupted

2

—used to express surprise or doubt

well

5 of 5 adjective

1

: being in a satisfactory or good state

all is well

2

: free or recovered from ill health : healthy

he's not a well man

3

: fortunate sense 1

it was well that we left

Medical Definition

well

adjective

ˈwel 

1

: free or recovered from infirmity or disease : healthy

a well person

2

: completely cured or healed

the wound is nearly well