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a healthy diet
a nutritious diet
a balanced diet
a beneficial diet
a proper diet
a good diet
a healthy economy
a strong economy
a stable economy
a balanced economy
a sturdy economy
a sustainable economy
healthy life
active life
happy life
a healthy environment
a sustainable environment
a positive environment
a helpful environment
a safe environment
a beneficial environment

Synonym Chooser

How is the word healthy distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of healthy are hale, robust, sound, well, and wholesome. While all these words mean "enjoying or indicative of good health," healthy implies full strength and vigor as well as freedom from signs of disease.

a healthy family

Where would hale be a reasonable alternative to healthy?

While in some cases nearly identical to healthy, hale applies particularly to robustness in old age.

still hale at the age of eighty

When is robust a more appropriate choice than healthy?

While the synonyms robust and healthy are close in meaning, robust implies the opposite of all that is delicate or sickly.

a lively, robust little boy

When might sound be a better fit than healthy?

Although the words sound and healthy have much in common, sound emphasizes the absence of disease, weakness, or malfunction.

a sound heart

When would well be a good substitute for healthy?

The words well and healthy can be used in similar contexts, but well implies merely freedom from disease or illness.

she has never been a well person

In what contexts can wholesome take the place of healthy?

The meanings of wholesome and healthy largely overlap; however, wholesome implies appearance and behavior indicating soundness and balance.

a face with a wholesome glow

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of healthy Rightly so, college graduates earn more money, are healthier, live longer, and experience better mental health than their peers. Lauren Smith, Orlando Sentinel, 26 Feb. 2025 Presented to the public in two segments, Lightfoot’s report showed the village went from having healthy budget balances to a multimillion-dollar deficit since Henyard was elected mayor. Mike Nolan, Chicago Tribune, 26 Feb. 2025 This offers a new tool for medicine and healthy aging interventions and leverages the power of large-scale protein analysis to provide a more accurate measure of an individual's biological age than chronological age. William A. Haseltine, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025 Carter started three of 11 games, missing time with a wrist injury, but was a healthy scratch throughout the playoffs. Tim Graham, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for healthy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for healthy
Adjective
  • Crockpots are still made well, as are, in my experience anyway, the more modernized version: Instant Pots.
    Parker Hall, WIRED, 2 Feb. 2025
  • The witch’s magic is still MIA, but her attitude is well and truly back.
    Alison Herman, Variety, 19 Sep. 2024
Adjective
  • Arquette's performance is more simple but just as effective, giving hope and soul to a divorced single mom trying to do her best for her kids but with a tendency to bring home the wrong guys.
    Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2025
  • Adrien Brody currently leads the way in the odds for best actor.
    Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Everyone is overrating the potential return and this return of late round picks is not substantial.
    Arthur Staple, The Athletic, 19 Feb. 2025
  • That includes significant Chinese investments in the United States; substantial purchases of U.S. crops, airplanes and other goods; and potentially some arrangement to address Chinese manufacturing overcapacity.
    Ana Swanson, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • This northern autonomous community of Spain is sophisticated, innovative and thriving — and its film sector is no different.
    Jennifer Green, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Feb. 2025
  • In the modern workforce context, this approach is the key to unlocking teams’ full potential and championing a thriving future.
    Chris Gallagher, USA TODAY, 15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • The great news is that overwhelm can be managed with the help of pre-planning, robust boundary reinforcement and firm standards for self-care.
    Ginni Saraswati, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
  • But as Trump begins his second term, many of the voters who sent him back to the White House welcome more robust government action to rein in a health care system many Americans perceive as out of control, polls show.
    Noam Levey, NPR, 26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • All that said, tempering the role of UPFs in your life and choosing either unprocessed or less-processed foods when possible can still orient your diet in a more healthful direction overall.
    Erica Sloan, SELF, 11 Feb. 2025
  • Beauty companies are increasingly focused on longevity, which is about health span — in other words, finding ways for people to experience more healthful and beautiful lives for a longer period.
    Jennifer Weil, WWD, 12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Certainly, there could be negative implications to that search, yet this sizable increase might also suggest a shift to organizations that remain unwavering in their commitments to inclusion, especially for younger generations.
    Julie Kratz, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2025
  • Many of the community’s prominent figures have built sizable platforms.
    David Peisner, Rolling Stone, 23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • State of play: Developers, business leaders and advocates are transforming Nubian Square, planting the seeds for a prosperous city center, from upcoming developments with artist housing and college classrooms to new liquor licenses and creative spaces.
    Steph Solis, Axios, 27 Feb. 2025
  • Set in a fictional Maryland suburb outside of Washington D.C., in one the most prosperous African American counties in the country, the powerful and prestigious Dupree family is the center of the community.
    Rosemary Rossi, Variety, 25 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Healthy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/healthy. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on healthy

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