well-adjusted
Meaning
(of a person) mentally and emotionally stable, especially because of being able to deal with social relationships and life situations successfully.
Structure
Usage
The children from the supportive home environment were remarkably well-adjusted.
He is a well-adjusted individual who handles stress with maturity.
The school's program aims to help students become well-adjusted members of the community.
Etymology
The compound adjective 'well-adjusted' is a modern psychological term built from native English elements. The adverb 'well', with ancient Germanic roots meaning "in a good way," intensifies the past participle of 'adjust', a verb borrowed from French that carries the Latin sense of bringing something close to a correct standard. The '-ed' suffix completes the form, creating a descriptive adjective. Thus, the literal "having been adapted well" evolved into the specialized modern meaning describing a person who has successfully adapted their psyche and behavior to the demands of their environment, achieving a state of balanced mental and social health.
Analysis
- well: From Old English wel, meaning "in a good manner, rightly, properly." It functions as an intensifying adverb modifying the participle. - adjust: From Old French ajuster, meaning "to arrange, adapt." It is the core verb root, derived ultimately from Latin ad- (to) + iuxtare (to come near). In this compound, it is used in its past participle form. - ed: A suffix from Old English -ed, -od, -ad, used to form adjectives from verbs, indicating a state or condition resulting from the action of the verb.