- [singular, uncountable] something that is better
- the better of the two books
- I expected better of him (= I thought he would have behaved better).
- your betters[plural] (old-fashioned) people who are more intelligent or more important than you
Word OriginOld English betera (adjective), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch beter and German besser, also to best.
Idioms
See better in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee better in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englisha change for the better/worse
- a person, thing, situation, etc. that is better/worse than the previous or present one
- Voters see the new leader as a change for the better.
- I reckon we've all made a big change for the better.
- His family had detected a change for the worse in his behaviour.
your elders and betters
- people who are older and wiser than you and that you should respect
for better or (for) worse
- used to say that something cannot be changed, whether the result is good or bad
get the better of somebody/something
- to defeat somebody/something or gain an advantage
- No one can get the better of her in an argument.
- She always gets the better of an argument.
- His curiosity got the better of him (= he didn't intend to ask questions, but he wanted to know so badly that he did).
so much the better/worse
- used to say that something is even better/worse
- We don't actually need it on Tuesday, but if it arrives by then, so much the better.
- If hurricanes become more powerful, as current research suggests, so much the worse.
think (the) better of somebody
- to have a higher opinion of somebody
- She has behaved appallingly—I must say I thought better of her.
Check pronunciation:
better