How to Use well-meaning in a Sentence

well-meaning

adjective
  • When that alignment is off, even the most well-meaning touch can fall flat or make things worse.
    — Brian N. Chin, The Conversation, 16 May 2025
  • As to those well-meaning folks who offer you these pep talks, be polite.
    — Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 4 June 2023
  • Nice, well-meaning folks don’t raise a man who can take a life without blinking an eye.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 12 Dec. 2024
  • As the pressure mounts, even a well-meaning boss can become the one nobody wants to work for.
    — Kevin Kruse, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
  • Or, your well-meaning mother won’t stop grilling you about still being single.
    — Jenna Ryu, SELF, 26 Dec. 2024
  • Romance is also in the air for Muriel’s, who’s been fixed up by her well-meaning friends.
    — Sara Netzley, EW.com, 19 Dec. 2024
  • Some are clear mess-ups, the short-fuse snaps or hurtful comments that even well-meaning parents make.
    — Isabella Cueto, STAT, 17 July 2023
  • When users don’t trust a platform, even well-meaning attempts to make things better can make things worse.
    — Scott Duke Kominers, The Atlantic, 22 Mar. 2024
  • Travis is a well-meaning screwup who comes from a family of cops but can’t get a place on the police force.
    — Robert Lloyd, Boston Herald, 7 Aug. 2025
  • His father, old-fashioned but well-meaning, had refused.
    — Danielle Parker, CBS News, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Many well-meaning gardeners and nature lovers feed whole or carved pumpkins to deer at the end of fall.
    — Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 26 Oct. 2024
  • Lots of suggestions for cures and whatnot, all from well-meaning people.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 4 June 2025
  • But even well-meaning physicians are not immune to the dynamic.
    — Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Dec. 2023
  • Without the right tools, even well-meaning philanthropists can slow down their progress and impact.
    — Kris Putnam-Walkerly, Forbes, 13 Sep. 2024
  • For some, the hollow, well-meaning sympathy proves too harsh to stomach.
    — Joseph Lezza, Longreads, 30 Mar. 2023
  • His actions during that flight were a well-meaning attempt simply to wake himself up from the dream.
    — Jolie Lash, ABC News, 16 Nov. 2023
  • Most striking is that milk’s return to favor isn’t being led by kids and their well-meaning parents.
    — HubSpot, 2 May 2025
  • Sometimes well-meaning adults try to keep the padding in place anyway, only to make things harder for the child.
    — Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 16 Oct. 2023
  • Even reassurances and hugs from well-meaning strangers, some offering to pray for them, can cause stress.
    — Chris Ramirez, jsonline.com, 2 Aug. 2025
  • Avoid any area that resembles a runway for children, dogs, even well-meaning neighbors.
    — Cindy Bruecks, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Dec. 2023
  • Even well-meaning people struggle to respond in ways that feel supportive.
    — Brian N. Chin, The Conversation, 25 July 2025
  • So, too, does the idea that a soccer coach could close fissures that even the well-meaning among career politicians have failed to seal.
    — Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 18 June 2026
  • To someone who fell forward, burned on their front, and was then rolled over by a well-meaning bystander, burning the back of their body too.
    — Lane Sainty, USA TODAY, 10 Sep. 2024
  • The dragonflies and ants captivated me more than the text or my well-meaning teacher.
    — Paul A. Smith, Journal Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2023
  • Hur concluded a jury would find Biden a well-meaning old man who was forgetful.
    — Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2024
  • Even the most well-meaning can cross boundaries without realizing it.
    — Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Though well-meaning, this habit robs teams of ownership and creativity.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
  • But as one soon-to-be mom recently found out, there is such a thing as getting too much help from a well-meaning family member.
    — Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 13 Mar. 2025
  • While well-meaning, this approach often achieves the opposite effect.
    — Abdo Riani, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
  • Dealing with prying relatives or well-meaning (or not-so-well-meaning) smug married friends?
    — Literary Hub, 13 Feb. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'well-meaning.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: