Where does “bettering” come from?
Bettering derives from Middle English beterynge, formed from Middle English better with the suffix Middle English -ing, which comes from Old English -ing, ultimately from Proto-Germanic batizōną and Proto-Indo-European bʰed-, meaning to dig or excavate.
bettering (English): present participle of better; improvement
Definitions
- present participle of better; improvement
Ancestry of “bettering”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | beterynge | Making better; A structure built to improve a... |
| 2 | Middle English | beteren | To better; to implement improvements or make... |
| 3 | Old English | beterian | to improve, to make better |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | batizōną | To make better; improve |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | -ōną | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 9 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |