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• better-off
  better-off

  adjective

  being in better circumstances, especially economically.
• better off
  better off

  In a more favorable position or financial circumstances. For example, They were better off flying than driving there, or They were better off than most of their neighbors. This phrase is the comparative form of well off. [Mid-1800s]

better-off

American  

[bet-er-awf, -of] / ˈbɛt ərˈɔf, -ˈɒf /

adjective

1. being in better circumstances, especially economically.

   Only the better-off nations can afford to send probes into space.

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better off Idioms  

1. In a more favorable position or financial circumstances. For example, They were better off flying than driving there, or They were better off than most of their neighbors. This phrase is the comparative form of well off. [Mid-1800s]

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Etymology

Origin of better-off

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

better-off better off

That's because 86.6% of better-off students got an A to C grades this year as opposed to 71% of those in the most deprived areas.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026

Yes, good public schools exist, but they tend to be in communities where only the better-off can afford to live.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026

Bankers interpret this as a sign that slightly better-off consumers are absorbing the higher prices, while lower-income customers are increasingly cutting back or seeking cheaper alternatives.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 8, 2026

It’s not to drag the relatively better-off down to the bottom, but to allow more people to pull themselves up.

From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2025

In 1793 over 50 percent of Philadelphia’s blacks were live-in domestic workers, doing the cooking, cleaning, laundering, and child caring for better-off whites.

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy

Still, she emphasized that students should be able to count on a degree or credential that they pay for making them better off.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026

You definitely shouldn’t care what becomes of the EPL or Manchester City; I’d be better off if I didn’t either.

From Salon ● Oct. 4, 2026

Ultimately, though, shareholders need to decide if they’re better off financially after a buyback.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

A university says a third of students starting courses this year are living at home or commuting to lectures so they can be "financially better off".

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

“You’re better off without him,” I said as I handed her the box of tissues from the coffee table.

From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence