improve on
verb
variants
or improve upon
improved on or improved upon; improving on or improving upon; improves on or improves upon
: to do better than
It's hard to improve on last year's record.
Examples of improve on in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The students who practiced concentrating also improved on standardized tests of sustained attention, including those that tested their reaction times or their ability to spot target symbols hidden in a grid.
—
Supreet Kaur, Scientific American, 10 June 2026
In 61 games this season, Lee has already almost equaled his 2025 wins above replacement metric, per Baseball Reference, and has improved on almost all fronts.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 10 June 2026
For one, Apple is improving on-device dictation courtesy of Apple Intelligence, but that's just the beginning.
—Ruben Circelli, PC Magazine, 9 June 2026
But Anyah didn’t improve on his ninth-place standing and Cromwell officially won, 58-56, over Ellington.
—Lori Riley, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2026
The 2002 Ferrari 575M Maranello facelift that followed merely tweaked around the edges; improving on a car so close to perfect was nearly impossible.
—Will Sabel Courtney, Robb Report, 28 May 2026
Supporting community programs and resources at the county and municipal level, and helping improve on what's working.
—Adam Thompson, CBS News, 28 May 2026
Backed by grants from the Space Studies Institute, follow-on prototypes improved on the mass driver concept, showing that a mass driver only 520 feet (160 meters) long could launch material off the surface of the moon.
—Leonard David, Space.com, 28 May 2026
This offseason, the Patriots asked Williams to gain weight and improve on his cuts at the top of routes.
—Chad Graff, New York Times, 27 May 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Supreet Kaur, Scientific American, 10 June 2026
In 61 games this season, Lee has already almost equaled his 2025 wins above replacement metric, per Baseball Reference, and has improved on almost all fronts.
—Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 10 June 2026
For one, Apple is improving on-device dictation courtesy of Apple Intelligence, but that's just the beginning.
—Ruben Circelli, PC Magazine, 9 June 2026
But Anyah didn’t improve on his ninth-place standing and Cromwell officially won, 58-56, over Ellington.
—Lori Riley, Hartford Courant, 1 June 2026
The 2002 Ferrari 575M Maranello facelift that followed merely tweaked around the edges; improving on a car so close to perfect was nearly impossible.
—Will Sabel Courtney, Robb Report, 28 May 2026
Supporting community programs and resources at the county and municipal level, and helping improve on what's working.
—Adam Thompson, CBS News, 28 May 2026
Backed by grants from the Space Studies Institute, follow-on prototypes improved on the mass driver concept, showing that a mass driver only 520 feet (160 meters) long could launch material off the surface of the moon.
—Leonard David, Space.com, 28 May 2026
This offseason, the Patriots asked Williams to gain weight and improve on his cuts at the top of routes.
—Chad Graff, New York Times, 27 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Improve on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/improve%20on. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
