Contrary to misconceptions, ameliorate and alleviate do have differences. While ameliorate means to
actually improve a situation, alleviate means to relieve the
stress of
the situation, make it more tolerable.
example: To ameliorate the bitter
soup, one might add other ingredients, improving the
soup itself. To alleviate the bitter
soup, one might distract the self while eating it, talking to friends, holding the nose, eating other foods, making it easier to consume. None of this lessens how bitter the soup actually is. It just alleviates the discomfort of consuming it.