See also: betér

Afrikaans

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Etymology

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From Dutch beter, from Middle Dutch beter, from Old Dutch betiro, from Proto-Germanic *batizô. The verb sense is a calque from English better, had better.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈbɪətər/
  • Audio:(file)

Adjective

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beter

  1. comparative degree of goed

Verb

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beter (present beter)

  1. had better (used as an auxiliary verb to mean should; must)
    Jy beter versigtig wees.
    You (had) better be careful.

Dutch

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Etymology

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From Middle Dutch beter, from Old Dutch betiro, from Proto-West Germanic *batiʀō, from Proto-Germanic *batizô, comparative of *gōdaz.

Cognate with Low German beter, West Frisian better, English better, German besser, Danish bedre, Swedish bättre.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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beter

  1. comparative degree of goed; better.
  2. not sick anymore; recovered (from a disease)
    Word snel weer beter!Get well soon!
  3. of high quality
    De nieuwe editie is te koop in de betere boekenwinkel.The new edition is for sale at any quality bookstore.

Descendants

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  • Afrikaans: beter
  • Berbice Creole Dutch: betre
  • Negerhollands: beeter
  • Sranan Tongo: betre

Verb

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beter

  1. inflection of beteren:
    1. first-person singular present indicative
    2. imperative

Middle Dutch

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Etymology

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From Old Dutch betera, betiro, from Proto-West Germanic *batiʀō.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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bēter

  1. better; comparative degree of goet

Derived terms

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Adverb

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bēter

  1. better; comparative degree of wel

Synonyms

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Descendants

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Middle English

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Adjective

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beter

  1. Alternative form of bettre

Adverb

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beter

  1. Alternative form of bettre

Noun

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beter

  1. Alternative form of bettre

Old French

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Etymology

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Probably from Old Norse beita.

Verb

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beter

  1. to bait

Conjugation

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This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. The forms that would normally end in *-ts, *-tt are modified to z, t. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

Saterland Frisian

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Etymology

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From Old Frisian betera, from Proto-West Germanic *batiʀō.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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beter (masculine beteren, feminine, plural or definite betere)

  1. comparative degree of goud: better

References

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  • Marron C. Fort (2015) “beter”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN

Swedish

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Verb

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beter

  1. present indicative of bete

Turkish

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Etymology

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From Ottoman Turkish بتر (beter), from Persian بدتر (bad-tar).

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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beter

  1. worse

Declension

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