better than
Idioms-
Superior to, as in He's no better than Tom at writing a memo . [9th century]
-
More than, larger in amount or greater in rate, as in My new car can do better than 100 miles an hour , or The new plan will cut better than 15 percent of costs . Some authorities consider this usage colloquial and advise that it be avoided in formal writing. [Late 1500s] Also see better half , def. 1.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Paying $1 million in taxes now is much better than paying $1 million in 2019.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
Mohammad Ali - 6 - Also better than he was at Headingley, nipping the ball in and out, but he won't find conditions better suited to his style.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
"It's undoubtedly better than before. Before, this oil wasn't being extracted; if no one extracts it, no one pays royalties, and no one profits from it," he said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026
I can think of several ways to end this column, but at the risk of repeating myself, I don’t think I can do better than to lean on this reminder:
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
I knew it would be, hands down, better than anything Jonah would give him.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.