1
as in surpassed
to be greater, better, or stronger than
this year's profits should better last year's by a wide margin
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in improved
to make better
social workers and reformers trying to better the lives of inner-city residents
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bettered
Overall, Hungary scored 25 goals in their four matches en route to the final, with Kocsis’ 11 for the tournament only bettered by France’s Just Fontaine’s 13 in 1958.
—
Will Jeanes, New York Times, 5 June 2026
The Flames have bettered their conference finish every season since joining in 2023, winning both the regular-season and tournament titles this year.
—Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 29 May 2026
Her 13th place there is unlikely to be bettered at the real thing.
—Jon O'Brien, Vulture, 11 May 2026
Rare is the Broadway season that hasn’t been bettered by an August Wilson revival, and this very busy spring is no exception.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 28 Apr. 2026
Yeboah bettered that in the 67th minute, taking advantage of another defensive breakdown to poke a pass from Tomás Chancalay at the left post past Marcinkowski.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026
Reneau was that guy too, right to Sunday when his 16 points were only bettered by Henderson’s 18.
—Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 22 Mar. 2026
Will Jeanes, New York Times, 5 June 2026
The Flames have bettered their conference finish every season since joining in 2023, winning both the regular-season and tournament titles this year.
—Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 29 May 2026
Her 13th place there is unlikely to be bettered at the real thing.
—Jon O'Brien, Vulture, 11 May 2026
Rare is the Broadway season that hasn’t been bettered by an August Wilson revival, and this very busy spring is no exception.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 28 Apr. 2026
Yeboah bettered that in the 67th minute, taking advantage of another defensive breakdown to poke a pass from Tomás Chancalay at the left post past Marcinkowski.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026
Reneau was that guy too, right to Sunday when his 16 points were only bettered by Henderson’s 18.
—Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 22 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bettered
Verb
-
In the sixth inning, Kansas City Royals star Salvador Perez surpassed Hall of Famer George Brett with his 137th career home run at the club’s home venue.—
Jaylon Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
19 June 2026
-
None of the Senate candidates surpassed the 50% threshold required to win, and Ossoff and Warnock headed to a January 2021 runoff against their Republican opponents.—
Jay Stahl,
USA Today,
18 June 2026
Verb
-
Marsch hopes his players’ reaction time and quickness will have improved by the World Cup thanks to the virtual reality.—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
-
The Nationals improved to 39-35.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
17 June 2026
Verb
-
Twice in the ‘70s, total volume exceeded one million acre-feet.—
Allen Best,
Denver Post,
14 June 2026
-
Now, more than a year after bringing the project to life, DeCarlo says the investment has exceeded expectations.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
White Whale Dirty Martini At White Whale in Las Vegas, the White Whale Dirty Martini is a spirit-forward martini enhanced with a robust, unfiltered olive oil fat wash.—
Aly Walansky,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2026
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The comedy of that isn’t undermined by the terror of Patricia’s plight; it’s enhanced by it.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
Before ending his career, Tanter witnessed another Laker capture the all-time scoring record as James eclipsed Abdul-Jabbar's 38,287 points.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
17 June 2026
-
The group’s commercial success in later years eclipsed the band’s experimental origins.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
17 June 2026
Verb
-
In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 briefly topped 70,000 for the first time Tuesday before trimming early gains after the Bank of Japan raised its key interest rate to 1%.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 June 2026
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They are ranked 28th by FIFA and topped their qualifying group with eight wins in 10 qualifier matches.—
PJ Green,
Kansas City Star,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bettered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bettered. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
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