had better

phrase

variants or had best

: would be wise to

had better go to bed

Examples of had better in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On the other side, Spring said the overhauled Macy’s stores have had better assortments, more customer assistance and stronger displays of merchandise to help improve the experience. — Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2026

Against Sacramento State, Eastern Michigan had better success passing the ball and most of the game struggled to find an efficient rushing attack. — Niles Hall, Mercury News, 3 Sep. 2026

Pushing back on the suggestion that the trial is a referendum on the healthcare system, Sprague argued that Clancy had better-than-average access to medical care but did not properly use it. — ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

Few Vikings players have had better training camps than those two. — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for had better

• abettor
• newsletter
• typesetter
• bettor
• debtor
• fetter
• getter
• letter
• netter
• petter
• rhetor
• setter