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Repair

v. capable, resilient professional

What it means

Meaning 1

To restore a damaged object, structure, or system to useful condition.

Reach for it when describing practical correction of physical or technical damage

Local mechanics repaired every donated bicycle before winter.

Meaning 2

To restore trust, a relationship, or harm through accountable action.

Reach for it when describing relational repair that addresses rather than hides damage

The director apologized publicly and began to repair the damaged relationship.

Words to choose between 9

By register, from playful at the top to literary at the bottom, and by meaning across. Tap a word to see when it fits.
Meaning 1Meaning 2
everyday
warm
professional
formal

Meaning 1: To restore a damaged object, structure, or system to useful condition.

  • everyday

    fix

    Fits when making something work again is enough

    Careful Fix can mean a temporary patch rather than durable repair.

  • warm

    mend

    Fits when joining a tear or break suits a personal object

    Careful Mend is less natural for complex systems.

  • professional

    overhaul

    Fits when extensive inspection and replacement are involved

    Careful Overhaul is too broad for one damaged part.

  • professional

    restore

    Fits when returning original condition or appearance matters

    Careful Restoration may preserve features beyond what working repair requires.

Meaning 2: To restore trust, a relationship, or harm through accountable action.

  • warm

    heal

    Fits when time and care reduce relational hurt

    Careful Healing can occur without the person responsible making repair.

  • warm

    make amends

    Fits when accountable action answers a personal wrong

    Careful Amends concerns responsibility, not every strained relationship.

  • warm

    reconcile

    Fits when resolving conflict between people is central

    Careful Reconciliation requires both sides and may exceed repair.

  • professional

    rebuild

    Fits when trust or connection must be reconstructed over time

    Careful Rebuild implies deeper damage than every repair.

  • formal

    redress

    Fits when correcting an injustice is precise

    Careful Redress is legal or moral and not naturally intimate.

Opposites 4

  • damage
  • break
  • betray
  • worsen

Common phrases 4

  • repair a roof

    The grant allowed residents to repair a roof before the rains.

  • repair the damage

    Skilled volunteers stayed to repair the damage after the storm.

  • repair trust

    Consistent disclosure is the first step to repair trust.

  • repair a relationship

    Both friends took time to repair a relationship strained by silence.

Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Neskaya, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Updated