English
better
Better comes from Old English betera ‘better’, from Proto-Germanic *batizô ‘better’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰed- ‘good’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰed-‘good’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰed-rósreconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*batizôreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*batiʀōreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150betera
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500better
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1604better
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰed-‘good’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰed-rósreconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*batizôreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*batiʀōreconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150betera
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500better
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1603–1604better
Earliest quotation: c. 1603–1604, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice: “I could never better stead thee than now.[…]”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰed- ‘good’
Another origin of better
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰedʰ-‘to unite, be associated, suit’reconstructed
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*gōdazas *batizôreconstructed
- Proto-Germanic, derivedc. 500 BCE–200 CE*batizōną‘to make better’reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150beterian‘to improve, to make better’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500beteren‘to better’
- Englishtodaybetter
Today it means
adj Greater in amount or quantity
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰed- / better