Bettering — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

verb adjective

Meaning & Definition of Bettering

Bettering (verb)

  1. to make better
  2. to make more tolerable or acceptable
  3. to make more complete or perfect

Bettering (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. as in supportive, constructive

    similar: ameliorative, amelioratory, constructive, supportive, gainful, lucrative, remunerative, advisable, desirable, healthful, healthy, salubrious, salutiferous, wholesome, auspicious, promising, propitious, gratifying, rewarding, satisfying, advantageous, benefic, beneficent, beneficial, benignant, favorable, friendly, good, helpful, kindly, profitable, salutary
    opposite: bad, disadvantageous, unfavorable, unfriendly, unhelpful, unprofitable, damaging, deleterious, harmful, injurious, insalubrious

Bettering (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to be greater, better, or stronger than

    "this year's profits should better last year's by a wide margin"

    similar: beating, eclipsing, exceeding, excelling, outclassing, outdistancing, outdoing, outgunning, outmatching, outshining, outstripping, overtopping, surpassing, topping, towering (over), transcending, going one better, running circles around
    related: one-upping, outpacing, outracing, outrunning, overpassing, besting, clobbering, conquering, crushing, defeating, drubbing, licking, mastering, outcompeting, outperforming, overcoming, overmatching, prevailing (over), routing, shaming, skunking, subduing, surmounting, thrashing, trimming, triumphing (over), trouncing, walloping, whipping, winning (against), worsting, outbalancing, outweighing, overbearing, overshadowing, trumping
    near: losing (to)

  2. to make better

    "social workers and reformers trying to better the lives of inner-city residents"

    similar: ameliorating, amending, enhancing, enriching, helping, improving, meliorating, perfecting, refining, upgrading
    related: correcting, emending, rectifying, reforming, remediating, remedying, editing, fine-tuning, redrafting, refurbishing, rehabbing, rehabilitating, revamping, revising, reworking, beefing (up), boosting, fortifying, intensifying, reinforcing, strengthening, fining, honing, polishing, retouching, touching up
    opposite: worsening
    near: damaging, endamaging, harming, hurting, impairing, injuring, spoiling, tarnishing, vitiating, blemishing, blighting, defacing, disfiguring, flawing, marring, diminishing, lessening, lowering, reducing

Related Entry: Better (verb)

Better is a different word from Bettering. The synonyms below are for better, not for bettering.

  1. to be greater, better, or stronger than

    "this year's profits should better last year's by a wide margin"

    similar: beat, eclipse, exceed, excel, outclass, outdistance, outdo, outgun, outmatch, outshine, outstrip, overtop, surpass, top, tower (over), transcend, go one better, run circles around
    related: one-up, outpace, outrace, outrun, overpass, best, clobber, conquer, crush, defeat, drub, lick, master, outcompete, outperform, overcome, overmatch, prevail (over), rout, shame, skunk, subdue, surmount, thrash, trim, triumph (over), trounce, wallop, whip, win (against), worst, outbalance, outweigh, overbear, overshadow, trump
    near: lose (to)

  2. to make better

    "social workers and reformers trying to better the lives of inner-city residents"

    similar: ameliorate, amend, enhance, enrich, help, improve, meliorate, perfect, refine, upgrade
    related: correct, emend, rectify, reform, remediate, remedy, edit, fine-tune, redraft, refurbish, rehab, rehabilitate, revamp, revise, rework, beef (up), boost, fortify, intensify, reinforce, strengthen, fine, hone, polish, retouch, touch up
    opposite: worsen
    near: damage, endamage, harm, hurt, impair, injure, spoil, tarnish, vitiate, blemish, blight, deface, disfigure, flaw, mar, diminish, lessen, lower, reduce

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Bettering

The most common words with a similar meaning to Bettering:

ameliorative, amelioratory, constructive, supportive, gainful, lucrative, remunerative, advisable, desirable, healthful, healthy, salubrious, salutiferous, wholesome, auspicious, promising, propitious, gratifying, rewarding, satisfying, advantageous, benefic, beneficent, beneficial, benignant, favorable, friendly, good, helpful, kindly, profitable, salutary, beating, eclipsing, exceeding, excelling, outclassing, outdistancing, outdoing, outgunning

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Bettering

Words with the opposite meaning of Bettering:

bad, disadvantageous, unfavorable, unfriendly, unhelpful, unprofitable, damaging, deleterious, harmful, injurious, insalubrious, worsening

Related Words for Bettering

one-upping, outpacing, outracing, outrunning, overpassing, besting, clobbering, conquering, crushing, defeating, drubbing, licking, mastering, outcompeting, outperforming, overcoming, overmatching, prevailing (over), routing, shaming, skunking, subduing, surmounting, thrashing, trimming, triumphing (over), trouncing, walloping, whipping, winning (against)

Near Antonyms of Bettering

losing (to), endamaging, harming, hurting, impairing, injuring, spoiling, tarnishing, vitiating, blemishing, blighting, defacing, disfiguring, flawing, marring, diminishing, lessening, lowering, reducing

Word Forms of Bettering

Inflections: bettered, betters

Origin & Etymology of Bettering

Middle English betteren, bettren "to improve, remedy, have the advantage," going back to Old English beterian "to improve, make better," going back to Germanic *batizōjan- (whence also Old Frisian beteria, betria "to atone, improve," Old Saxon betaron "to mend," Old High German bezzirōn "to improve, enrich," Old Icelandic betra "to improve"), verbal derivative of *batizōn better:1

First known use: before 12th centuryt

Frequently Asked Questions about Bettering

What does "Bettering" mean?

"Bettering" means to make better. As an a verb and an adjective, it is defined as: to make better. It has 3 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Bettering"?

Other words for "Bettering" include ameliorative, amelioratory, constructive, supportive, gainful, lucrative, remunerative and advisable. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Bettering" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Bettering"?

There are 122 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Bettering". Common alternatives include ameliorative, amelioratory, constructive, supportive, gainful, lucrative, remunerative, advisable, desirable and healthful.

What is the opposite of "Bettering"?

Antonyms of "Bettering" include bad, disadvantageous, unfavorable, unfriendly, unhelpful, unprofitable, damaging and deleterious. Near antonyms include losing (to), endamaging, harming and hurting.

How do you use "Bettering" in a sentence?

Examples of "Bettering" in a sentence: "this year's profits should better last year's by a wide margin"; "social workers and reformers trying to better the lives of inner-city residents".

Is "Bettering" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Bettering" can be used as a verb and an adjective, depending on the context.

What is the origin of the word "Bettering"?

"Bettering" comes from Middle English betteren, bettren "to improve, remedy, have the advantage," going back to Old English beterian "to improve, make better," going back to Germanic *batizōjan- (whence also Old Frisian beteria, betria "to atone, improve," Old Saxon betaron "to mend," Old High German bezzirōn "to improve, enrich," Old Icelandic betra "to improve"), verbal derivative of *batizōn better:1. First known use: before 12th centuryt.

What is another word for "Bettering" meaning "as in supportive, constructive"?

When "Bettering" (adjective) means as in supportive, constructive, synonyms include ameliorative, amelioratory, constructive, supportive, gainful and lucrative. Opposites in this sense include bad, disadvantageous, unfavorable and unfriendly.