self-improvement

American  

[self-im-proov-muhnt, self-] / ˈsɛlf ɪmˈpruv mənt, ˌsɛlf- /

noun

1. improvement of one's mind, character, etc., through one's own efforts.

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self-improvement British  

noun

1. the improvement of one's status, position, education, etc, by one's own efforts

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Other Word Forms

• self-improver
  noun
• self-improvable
  adjective
• self-improving
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of self-improvement

First recorded in 1735–45

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Explanation

The process of making yourself a better or more knowledgable person can be called self-improvement. Doing sit-ups every night and learning to speak Mandarin might be part of your new self-improvement routine. Anything you do in an attempt to improve yourself is self-improvement. Volunteering at a homeless shelter, going to college, learning to meditate — all of these things can lead to self-improvement. Often, self-improvement and self-help are used interchangeably. The improvement part of this word originally meant "making money with something," but by the 1640s it came to mean "the act of making better."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

self-improvement

It highlights 11 domains to watch right now, including chip design, cybersecurity, biology, finance, legal, quant trading, recursive self-improvement, hardware design, materials science, alignment and software engineering.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

Completing his latest course highlights Azpilicueta's thirst for knowledge and a desire for constant self-improvement.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

"It's hard to overstate how dangerous speeding towards RSI is," Wang posted in response to Coxon's resignation, referring to recursive self-improvement, which is a technique where software is designed to continuously teach itself.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

“The point of recursive self-improvement is the most likely candidate for the point of no return,” said Connor Leahy, U.S. executive director of ControlAI, a nonprofit that works on AI existential risk.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

When he returned to McCandless’s camp and launched into the self-improvement pitch, though, McCandless cut him off abruptly.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

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