Improve
verb ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
- 1 To make (something) better; to increase the value or productivity (of something). transitive
"Painting the woodwork will improve this house."
- 2 To disprove or make void; to refute. obsolete
"One ſayth this and a nother that / but can not agre. Nether can any of them make ſo ſtronge a reaſon vvhich a nother can not improve."
- 3 get better wordnet
- 4 To become better. intransitive
"I have improved since taking the tablets."
- 5 To disapprove of; to find fault with; to reprove; to censure. obsolete
"[W]hen he reherſed his preachinge and his doynges vnto the hye Apoſtles / they coulde improve no thinge […]"
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 to make better wordnet
- 7 To use or employ to good purpose; to turn to profitable account. dated
"to improve one's time; to improve his means"
Example
More examples"Lately, I've been letting my English go. It seems I'll never improve at it, no matter how many years I study."
Etymology
From Anglo-Norman emprouwer, from Old French en- + prou (“profit”), from Vulgar Latin prode (“advantageous, profitable”).
From Latin improbō (“disapprove, reject”). Doublet of improbate.
Related phrases
More for "improve"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.