This shows grade level based on the word’better than bouillon beef consomme complexity. They are no better than thieves.

He knows the way better than we do. I probably know him better than anyone else. I walked better than a mile to town. We have bettered last year’s production record.

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS? Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift. Because of his asthma, he would be better off in a different climate. He is going to night school because he wants to better himself. His health changed for the better. The neighbors went us one better by buying two new cars.

We had better stay indoors today. I was tempted to make a sarcastic retort, but thought better of it. I think better of him now that he’s gone back to college. What is a basic definition of better? Better is an adjective that describes something as being superior or is an adverb that means something is done to a higher degree or more completely.

As a verb, better means to improve. The word better has more specific senses as an adjective, adverb, and a verb. As an adjective, the word better is a comparative of the word good, with the superlative being best. Real-life examples: An A is a better grade than a B on a test.

Most people would agree that a spoonful of cinnamon has a better taste than a spoonful of cough medicine. A racer who finishes first is a better driver than all of the other racers. Used in a sentence: I think a puppy is a better pet for a kid than a snake. Sometimes, only one of the things being compared is mentioned, while the other is implied. This is most commonly done when the word better is used to mean improved health.

Used in a sentence: I was throwing up all morning, but I am better now. Better is also used as an adverb as a comparative of the word well, with best as the superlative. It often describes how something is done. For example, I can play soccer well, a college soccer player plays better, and an Olympic soccer player plays best out of the three of us.

Real-life examples: A chess master will play chess better than someone who has never played at all. Some students learn better than others. You read articles like this one to learn how to use words better. As a verb, better means to improve something. Used in a sentence: Laurel took the time to better herself as a business owner. The first records of better come from before the 900s. It comes from the Old English betera and is related to similar words from other languages, such as the Old Norse betr, the Gothic batiza, and the Old High German bezziro.

What are some other forms related to better? What are some synonyms for better? What are some words that share a root or word element with better? What are some words that often get used in discussing better? What are some words better may be commonly confused with? Better is a very common word that means something is superior or something is done in a superior way.

Next goal is to buy a better camera. 11, and those working to build a better world after. Running seems like a great idea until you’re 30 seconds in and decide pizza sounds better. Is better used correctly in the following sentence? I played well and scored 17 points, but she played better and scored 20 points to beat me. What are other ways to say better?

2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. See definition of better on Dictionary. 2013 by the Philip Lief Group. See how your sentence looks with different synonyms.