as in defeating
to achieve a victory over
at last she's bested her card-playing mother at the game of hearts
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Recent Examples of besting
Woodland Hills’ temperature peaked at 100, besting a temperature of 92 degrees in 1997.
—
City News Service, Daily News, 19 Mar. 2026
This was a record turnaround among SpaceX launches from Space Coast launch pads at 2 hours and 54 minutes besting October’s double launch that saw a Falcon 9 launch at CCSFS just eight hours, 42 minutes after a Falcon Heavy launch at KSC.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 Mar. 2026
Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour coached his 600th career game for the franchise and picked up his 367th career win, the most for a head coach at the 600-game mark, besting Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper, who set the previous record of 364.
—ABC News, 14 Mar. 2026
Bugatti set the production car top speed record in 2010 with a 267 mph run in a Veyron Super Sport, besting an effort five years earlier that saw a Veyron go 253 mph.
—Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 13 Mar. 2026
The award-winning Pasquale’s Pizzeria Napoletana of South Kingstown also garnered a huge vote in besting West Warwick’s Cowesset Pizza.
—Gail Ciampa, The Providence Journal, 5 Mar. 2026
Full-year revenue guidance is expected to range between $225 million and $245 million, besting the consensus forecast of $191 million.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 26 Feb. 2026
City News Service, Daily News, 19 Mar. 2026
This was a record turnaround among SpaceX launches from Space Coast launch pads at 2 hours and 54 minutes besting October’s double launch that saw a Falcon 9 launch at CCSFS just eight hours, 42 minutes after a Falcon Heavy launch at KSC.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 Mar. 2026
Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour coached his 600th career game for the franchise and picked up his 367th career win, the most for a head coach at the 600-game mark, besting Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper, who set the previous record of 364.
—ABC News, 14 Mar. 2026
Bugatti set the production car top speed record in 2010 with a 267 mph run in a Veyron Super Sport, besting an effort five years earlier that saw a Veyron go 253 mph.
—Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 13 Mar. 2026
The award-winning Pasquale’s Pizzeria Napoletana of South Kingstown also garnered a huge vote in besting West Warwick’s Cowesset Pizza.
—Gail Ciampa, The Providence Journal, 5 Mar. 2026
Full-year revenue guidance is expected to range between $225 million and $245 million, besting the consensus forecast of $191 million.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 26 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for besting
Verb
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His Jayhawks went 1-1 at the Big 12 tournament, defeating TCU 78-73 on Thursday before getting clobbered by Houston 69-47 in Friday’s semifinals.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
16 Mar. 2026
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When Alejandro Bran struck a volley from 24 yards out last week at BMO Stadium, the Costa Rican delivered a lightning strike that LD Alajuelense needed in order to have a chance of defeating the Los Angeles Football Club.—
Josh Gross,
Daily News,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
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This prototype may offer a sustainable solution for long-term exploration on Earth and other planets by overcoming the need for batteries.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Mar. 2026
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Founded by a young mother overcoming thyroid cancer, the brand was created to inspire hope, strength and faith during life’s hardest seasons.—
Tory Johnson,
ABC News,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Herson made multiple attempts on the route and, like most climbers, fell while mastering each challenging move.—
Frederick Dreier,
Outside,
16 Mar. 2026
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Rei is a skilled visual artist, mastering new techniques often in a variety of traditional and digital mediums.—
Heide Janssen,
Oc Register,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Aggies received an automatic bid to the tournament after beating San Diego State in the Mountain West Conference tournament.—
Tom Ignudo,
CBS News,
16 Mar. 2026
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Sacramento improved to 4-9 in back-to-back situations 24 hours after beating the Los Angeles Clippers.—
Jason Anderson,
Sacbee.com,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Charlotte won the third period 37-31 to remain ahead of Miami before taking full control of the contest in the fourth quarter.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
18 Mar. 2026
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As the seconds ticked down, shaded his coverage to Mark’s left, taking away the drive.—
Cedric Golden,
Austin American Statesman,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Vin Baker did not want to return a conquering University of Hartford hero just yet.—
Dom Amore,
Hartford Courant,
4 Mar. 2026
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Best of luck conquering the world today and, of course, do keep in touch.—
Ed Silverman,
STAT,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
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France's government is bolstering the country's military presence in the Middle East, dispatching its aircraft carrier and other warships, while President Emmanuel Macron engages with key players in the conflict, including Iran, in a bid to position Paris for future diplomatic talks.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Mar. 2026
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Since then, the agency has increased training on STAR and focused internal quality assurance processes on the dispatching process.—
Shelly Bradbury,
Denver Post,
15 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Besting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/besting. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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