verbessern

Forms

verbessern (third-person singular present verbessert, past tense verbesserte, past participle verbessert, auxiliary haben)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle High German verbezzern, formed from Middle High German ver- + bezzern (“to make better”).^[2][3][1] The prefix intensifies the meaning of bessern, Old High German bezzirōn (10th/11th century), a verb formed from the comparative besser.^[3][4][5] The comparative is Old High German bezziro, from Proto-Germanic *batizô, also seen in Gothic 𐌱𐌰𐍄𐌹𐌶𐌰 (batiza), Old Norse betri and Old English betera.^[5][3][1] It is one of the forms built on a Germanic stem meaning “good” (see bass) that serve as the comparison of gut in all the Germanic languages; the further origin of the stem is uncertain.^[5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Middle High German verbezzern is first recorded in Heinrich von dem Türlin's Diu Crône (about 1230).^[2] It meant “to make good, settle, make better, repair”, and also “to pay a fine or wergild for something”.^[2] Middle Low German vorbēteren meant “to mend”, and vorbēteringe was a fine imposed by a court or a compensation.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The Grimms note that bessern and verbessern had the same meaning in Middle High German and older New High German, and that the finer differences of modern usage come from the intensifying force of ver-.^[4] The verb was used of real things, such as books, houses and estates, and of abstract ones such as abuses or a country's condition.^[4] The noun Verbesserung is recorded in Upper German from the 15th century.^[3]

Today the verb also means “to correct” (a text, a mistake), and in sports “to better” a record or a time.^[6] The playful blend verschlimmbessern “to make worse by trying to improve” combines it with verschlimmern.^[1]

Timeline

• About 1230 – Middle High German verbezzern appears in Diu Crône.^[2]
• 15th century – Verbesserung is first recorded in Upper German.^[3]
• 1487 – das Verbessern is used as a noun in a document of the Imperial Diet.^[7]

Meanings

Verb

1. To improve, make better: Die Stadt will den Nahverkehr verbessern.^[6][1]
2. (sports) To better a record or a time: Sie verbesserte ihre Bestzeit um zwei Sekunden.^[6]
3. To correct a text or a mistake: Die Lehrerin verbessert die Diktate.^[6][1]
4. (reflexive) To become better: Seine Noten haben sich verbessert.^[6][1]
5. (reflexive) To improve one's situation, especially financially: Mit der neuen Stelle hat sie sich verbessert.^[6]

Word family

• Verbesserung
• Verbesserer

Related words

• verschlimmbessern
• besser
• bessern
• Buße
• English better

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Mittelhochdeutsches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., online, koeblergerhard.de/wikiling
3. ^ a b c d e f g Pfeifer, Wolfgang, et al. (1993), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, 2nd ed., Berlin: Akademie-Verlag; digital revised version in the DWDS, dwds.de
4. ^ a b c Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 25, 106
5. ^ a b c Kluge, Friedrich; Seebold, Elmar (2011), Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 25th ed., Berlin / Boston: De Gruyter, p. 114
6. ^ a b c d e f Duden. Das große Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache in zehn Bänden (1999), 3rd ed., Mannheim: Dudenverlag
7. ^ Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilhelm (1854–1961), Deutsches Wörterbuch, 16 vols. in 32, Leipzig: Hirzel; digital: Wörterbuchnetz, Trier Center for Digital Humanities, p. 25, 107