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
In Central Park, the high was 90 degrees, besting the previous record of 87 from 1941.
—
Matthew Villafane, CBS News, 16 Apr. 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, 14 Apr. 2026
New Mom School was named a Rising Star, besting fellow nominees Arms Cyber Defense and Ethos.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2026
Sure enough, the project landed at Number One with more than 150,000 album-equivalent units moved in its opening week, besting the Weeknd’s Dawn FM by a modest 2,300 units.
—Kyle Eustice, VIBE.com, 30 Mar. 2026
Rincan won his first four matches, besting Jayden Espinoza of Arizona, Marquavious Lane of Georgia, Robby Newton of Rhode Island and Jared Goodwon of Virginia.
—Barry Scanlon, Boston Herald, 29 Mar. 2026
While its regular season wasn't amazing, Kansas is loaded with talent as usual — and Pitino thinks the Jayhawks could be one of the few teams capable of besting the Johnnies' power and strength in the post.
—ABC News, 21 Mar. 2026
Phoenix soared to 102 degrees on Tuesday, easily besting its previous March record of 100 degrees.
—Chris Dolce, CNN Money, 20 Mar. 2026
Woodland Hills’ temperature peaked at 100, besting a temperature of 92 degrees in 1997.
—City News Service, Daily News, 19 Mar. 2026
Matthew Villafane, CBS News, 16 Apr. 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, 14 Apr. 2026
New Mom School was named a Rising Star, besting fellow nominees Arms Cyber Defense and Ethos.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2026
Sure enough, the project landed at Number One with more than 150,000 album-equivalent units moved in its opening week, besting the Weeknd’s Dawn FM by a modest 2,300 units.
—Kyle Eustice, VIBE.com, 30 Mar. 2026
Rincan won his first four matches, besting Jayden Espinoza of Arizona, Marquavious Lane of Georgia, Robby Newton of Rhode Island and Jared Goodwon of Virginia.
—Barry Scanlon, Boston Herald, 29 Mar. 2026
While its regular season wasn't amazing, Kansas is loaded with talent as usual — and Pitino thinks the Jayhawks could be one of the few teams capable of besting the Johnnies' power and strength in the post.
—ABC News, 21 Mar. 2026
Phoenix soared to 102 degrees on Tuesday, easily besting its previous March record of 100 degrees.
—Chris Dolce, CNN Money, 20 Mar. 2026
Woodland Hills’ temperature peaked at 100, besting a temperature of 92 degrees in 1997.
—City News Service, Daily News, 19 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for besting
Verb
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Ben Shelton bounced back from disappointment last year by defeating Flavio Cobolli 6-2, 7-5 to win the Munich Open on Sunday.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 Apr. 2026
-
Cargill won the title at Saturday Night’s Main Event in November, defeating Tiffany Stratton.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Frank said the team could take pride in overcoming its dreadful start to come within a few victories of landing a higher seed that would have assured them a playoff spot, and posting its league-best 15th consecutive winning season.—
Janis Carr,
Oc Register,
17 Apr. 2026
-
The Halos stormed through the playoffs to this franchise's only championship, overcoming a 3-2 series deficit to Barry Bonds and the San Francisco Giants to win the World Series.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Led by John Wist, hands-on course will guide through steps from developing concept and honing storytelling skills to mastering interview techniques, gear setup, audio engineering, and video production.—
Staff Report,
Baltimore Sun,
15 Apr. 2026
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So she’s certainly put in the reps mastering how to shop and curate a valuable collection.—
Karla Walsh,
Southern Living,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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On the throw home, Williams advanced to second, beating a tag, and Brown raced home from third to score the third run.—
Matt Le Cren,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Apr. 2026
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Deni Avdija had 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Blazers, who advanced to the playoffs for the first time since 2021 by beating the Phoenix Suns in the Play-In Tournament.—
Christian Clark,
New York Times,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Spotify is also taking the opportunity to introduce a new chart in the US that shows the best kids' and family stories to listen to.—
James Peckham,
PC Magazine,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Now, the junior midfielder is taking her game to another level.—
Steve Millar,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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One after another, the avatars of Democratic success in Georgia took the stage Saturday and were greeted like conquering heroes by hundreds of party faithful at the annual Carter-Lewis gala.—
Greg Bluestein,
AJC.com,
12 Apr. 2026
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Although Beijing has numerous options for conquering Taiwan, the most appealing for the Chinese military would begin with a partial blockade of the island, much like the one Iran imposed on the strait.—
Simon Shuster,
The Atlantic,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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For generations, 911 operators have been the backbone of the American emergency response network, answering calls for help, and then dispatching and coordinating police and firefighters, SWAT teams, mental-health counselors and animal-control officers.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
6 Apr. 2026
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The event was private, but the German tabloid Bild had staked it out, dispatching from Munich a long-lens photographer named Robert Gongoll.—
Simon Akam,
Vanity Fair,
2 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Besting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/besting. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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