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wholesome

adjective

1. conducive to moral or general well-being; salutary; beneficial:
   wholesome recreation;
   wholesome environment.
   Synonyms: good, helpful
2. conducive to bodily health; healthful; salubrious:
   wholesome food;
   wholesome air;
   wholesome exercise.
   Synonyms: nutritious, nourishing
3. suggestive of physical or moral health, especially in appearance.

/ ˈhəʊlsəm /

adjective

1. conducive to health or physical wellbeing
2. conducive to moral wellbeing
3. characteristic or suggestive of health or wellbeing, esp in appearance

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Derived Forms

• ˈwholesomely, adverb
• ˈwholesomeness, noun

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Other Words From

• wholesome·ly adverb
• wholesome·ness noun

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Word History and Origins

Origin of wholesome1

First recorded in

1150–1200; Middle English ho(o)lsom; equivalent to whole

+ -some 1;

cognate with Old High German heilsam, Old Norse heilsamr

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Word History and Origins

Origin of wholesome1

C12: from

whole

(healthy) +

-some 1; related to German heilsam healing

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Synonym Study

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Example Sentences

He explains that the trend is popular now because "it's a great way to get people together to have a wholesome time".

His unlikely rise, combined with a perfectionist approach and wholesome demeanor, prompted one teammate to call him “Captain America.”

For generations after slavery, white writers routinely disparaged the Black family, claiming it wasn’t as strong or as wholesome as their own.

Instead, what Erin Foster found as she scrolled through the account of the cute guy from her gym was disarmingly wholesome.

The encounter was par for the proverbial course in one of the most wholesome political races in Southern California.