best

See also: Best

English

WOTD – 27 August 2010

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Middle English beste, from Old English betst, betest ‎(“best”), from Proto-Germanic *batistaz ‎(“best”), from Proto-Indo-European *bhAd- ‎(“good”). Cognate with Scots best ‎(“best”), West Frisian best ‎(“best”), Dutch best ‎(“best”), Low German best ‎(“best”), German beste ‎(“best”), Danish bedst ‎(“best”), Swedish bäst ‎(“best”), Icelandic bestur ‎(“best”). More at better.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɛst/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛst

Adjective

best

1. superlative form of good: most good.

   I can either be your best friend or your worst enemy.‎

   • William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

     When he is best, he is a little worse than a man.

   • John Milton (1608-1674)

     Heaven's last, best gift

   • 2013 August 10, Schumpeter, “Cronies and capitols”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848:

     Policing the relationship between government and business in a free society is difficult. […] Governments have to find the best people to fill important jobs: there is a limited supply of people who understand the financial system, for example. But governments must also remember that businesses are self-interested actors who will try to rig the system for their own benefit.

2. Most; largest.

   Unpacking took the best part of a week.‎

Usage notes

In informal (often jocular) contexts, best may be inflected further and given the comparative bester and the superlative bestest; these forms are nonstandard.

Derived terms

• bestness
• bester, bestest

Antonyms

• worst

Translations

superlative of the adjective good

• Afrikaans: beste (af)
• Albanian: më i (sq) miri
• Arabic: (اَلـ (ar) ‎(al--) +) أَفْضَل ‎(ʾafḍal), (اَلـ (ar) ‎(al--) +) أَحْسَن ‎(ʾaḥsan)
• Armenian: ամենալավ ‎(amenalav), լավագույն ‎(lavaguyn)
• Asturian: el meyor
• Bulgarian: най-добър ‎(naj-dobǎr)
• Catalan: el millor (ca)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 最好 ‎(zeoi³ hou²)

  Mandarin: 最好 (zh) ‎(zuìhǎo)

• Czech: nejlepší (cs)
• Danish: bedst
• Dutch: best (nl)
• Estonian: parim pl
• Faliscan: manomo ‎(manomo)
• Finnish: paras (fi)
• French: (+ le) meilleur (fr)
• Friulian: il miôr
• Galician: o mellor m
• Georgian: საუკეთესო ‎(sauḳeteso)
• German: (+ der, die, das) beste (de), bester (de)
• Hungarian: legjobb (hu)
• Icelandic: bestur
• Ido: maxim bona (io)

• Irish: is fearr
• Italian: il migliore (it)
• Japanese: 最高の (ja) ‎(saikō no), 最良の ‎(sairyō no), 一番の ‎(ichiban), ベスト (ja) ‎(besuto)
• Khmer: ល្អបំផុត ‎(l’ɑɑ bɑmpʰot)
• Lao: please add this translation if you can
• Latin: optimus (la) m, optima (la) f, optimum (la) n
• Macedonian: најдобар ‎(najdobar)
• Malay: terbaik, terbagus, paling baik, paling bagus
• Manx: bare, share
• Norwegian: best (no)
• Persian: بِهتَرین (fa) ‎(behtærīn)
• Polish: najlepszy (pl)
• Portuguese: o melhor (pt)
• Russian: лу́чший (ru) ‎(lúčšij), наилу́чший (ru) ‎(nailúčšij)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: најбољи

  Roman: najbolji (sh)

• Slovak: najlepší
• Spanish: el mejor (es)
• Swedish: bäst (sv)
• Tagalog: pinakamabuti
• Thai: ดีที่สุด
• Turkish: en iyi
• Vietnamese: tốt nhất
• Welsh: gorau

Adverb

best

1. superlative form of well: most well
   • John Milton (1608-1674)

     Thou serpent! That name best befits thee.

   • Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834)

     He prayeth best, who loveth best / All things both great and small.

   • 1907, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “chapter VIII”, in The Younger Set (Project Gutenberg; EBook #14852), New York, N.Y.: A. L. Burt Company, published 1 February 2005 (Project Gutenberg version), OCLC 4241346:

     At her invitation he outlined for her the succeeding chapters with terse military accuracy ; and what she liked best and best understood was avoidance of that false modesty which condescends, turning technicality into pabulum.

2. To the most advantage; with the most success, cause, profit, benefit, or propriety.
   • John Milton (1608-1674)

     Had we best retire? I see a storm.

   • William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863)

     Had I not best go to her?

Translations

superlative of the adverb well

• Arabic: أَفْضَل ‎(ʾafḍal), أَحْسَن ‎(ʾaḥsan)
• Armenian: ամենալավ ‎(amenalav)
• Bulgarian: най-добре ‎(naj-dobre)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 最好 (zh) ‎(zuìhǎo)

• Czech: nejlépe (cs)
• Finnish: parhaiten
• French: (+ le) mieux (fr)
• Georgian: გადასარევად ‎(gadasarevad)
• German: beste (de), am besten (de)

• Greek: άριστα (el) ‎(árista), κάλλιστα (el) ‎(kállista)
• Japanese: 最高 (ja) ‎(saikō)
• Latin: optime (la)
• Macedonian: најдобар ‎(najdobar)
• Norwegian: best (no)
• Persian: بهترین (fa) ‎(behtarin), بهشت (fa) ‎(behešt)
• Portuguese: melhor (pt)
• Russian: лучше всего (lúčše vsegó read: lúčše vsevó), лучше всех (lúčše vseh)
• Serbo-Croatian: najbolje (sh)
• Spanish: mejor (es) m
• Swedish: bäst (sv)
• Thai: ที่ดีที่สุด

Noun

best ‎(countable and uncountable, plural bests)

1. (uncountable) The supreme effort one can make, or has made.

   I did my best.

   My personal best in that race is eighteen minutes, four seconds.

   • 2011 September 28, Tom Rostance, “Arsenal 2 - 1 Olympiakos”, in BBC Sport^[1]:

     Home defender Per Mertesacker had to be at his best to stop a dangerous cross from Vassilis Torossidis reaching Djebbour, but moments later Arsenal doubled their lead through Santos.

2. (countable) The person (or persons; or thing or things) that is (are) most excellent.
   • 1994, Otis L. Guernsey and Jeffrey Sweet, The Best Plays of 1993-1994, page vii:

     Mel Gussow reviews the bests of off off Broadway

   • 1995 October, Cincinnati Magazine, [2]:

     But in true Cincinnati style, the bests consistently outnumber the worsts.

   • 2011, G. Edward Evans, Sheila S. Intner, and Jean Riddle Weihs, Introduction to Technical Services, page 149:

     There are the bests for each institution, the bests for coalitions, and, of course, the bests for the group as a whole.

   • 2013, Jesse Jose, Collections Of My Best And Most-Hated, "A Cup O' Kapeng Barako" Writings, page 209:

     If he's one of the bests, he should be fighting the bests, NOT the pipitsugins.

Translations

effort

• Finnish: paras (fi), parhain (fi)
• French: mieux (fr) m
• German: Bestes n
• Irish: dícheall m

• Japanese: ベスト (ja) ‎(besuto)
• Norwegian: beste (no)
• Russian: всё возмо́жное n ‎(vsjó vozmóžnoje)
• Swedish: bästa (sv)

person

• Finnish: paras (fi), parhain (fi), parhaimmisto (fi)
• French: élite (fr), fleur (fr), crème (fr), dessus du panier, meilleur (fr)
• Friulian: miôr
• Galician: elite f
• German: Bester m, Beste f
• Italian: migliore (it)
• Norwegian: best (no)

• Portuguese: melhor (pt) m
• Russian: лу́чший (ru) m ‎(lúčšij)
• Spanish: élite, flor (es), nata (es)
• Swedish: bästa (sv), bäste (sv)

Verb

best ‎(third-person singular simple present bests, present participle besting, simple past and past participle bested)

1. To surpass in skill or achievement.
2. (transitive) To beat in a contest;
   • 2010, T. William Phillips, Restless Heart, page 16:

     "You did not win because I was sloppy. You bested me, Uncle. I've never seen you fight like that before.”

Antonyms

• worst

Translations

to beat

• Bulgarian: вземам връх над ‎(vzemam vrǎh nad)
• Czech: porazit (cs)
• Dutch: slaan (nl), overmeesteren (nl), verslaan (nl), overwinnen (nl)
• Finnish: päihittää (fi)
• French: battre (fr), vaincre (fr), surpasser (fr), enfoncer (fr), écraser (fr), aplatir (fr), dominer (fr), défaire (fr)

• German: übertreffen
• Italian: superare (it), dominare (it), vincere (it), battere (it)
• Maori: tārū
• Norwegian: slå (no)
• Spanish: sobrepasar (es), superar (es), vencer (es), rebasar (es), derrotar (es), aventajar (es)
• Swedish: besegra (sv)

Related terms

• better
• bestest

Derived terms

• all for the best
• all the best
• as best one can
• at best
• for one's best
• had best
• have the best of
• get the best of
• make the best of
• the best part of
• with the best
• best of the best

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: until · does · Gutenberg · #245: best · word · light · felt

Anagrams

• bets

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Dutch

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɛst

• audio

  (file)

Etymology

From Middle Dutch best, from Old Dutch *betst, from Proto-Germanic *batistaz, superlative of *gōdaz. Compare Low German best, English best, West Frisian best, German besten, Danish bedst.

Adjective

best

1. Superlative form of goed; best.
2. fine, okay

   Mag ik buiten spelen? — Ik vind het best, als je maar voor het eten weer thuis bent.

   May I go and play outside? — It's fine with me, as long as you're back home again before dinner.

Synonyms

• (fine): prima

Adverb

best

1. quite, rather

   Dat zou best kunnen.

   It's quite possible.

Derived terms

• best oké

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Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch *betst, from Proto-Germanic *batistaz, superlative of *gōdaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /best/

Adjective

best

1. best; superlative degree of goet

Adverb

best

1. best; superlative degree of wel

Descendants

• Dutch: best

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Norwegian Bokmål

Adjective

best

1. indefinite superlative of god
2. indefinite superlative of bra

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Norwegian Nynorsk

Adjective

best

1. indefinite superlative of god
2. indefinite superlative of bra

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Old Saxon

Alternative forms

• betst

Etymology

from Proto-Germanic *batistaz ‎(“best”).

Adverb

best

1. best

Descendants

• Low German: best

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Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bɛst]

Adjective

best

1. superlative degree of guid

Derived terms

• ill-best ‎(“best of a bad lot, best of a poor selection”)

Noun

best ‎(plural bests)

1. groomsman

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Swedish

Noun

best c

1. beast

Declension

Inflection of best
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	best	besten	bestar	bestarna
Genitive	bests	bestens	bestars	bestarnas