Improved

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ɪmˈpɹuːvd/

Definitions

1. Characterized by a positive transformation that results in greater quality or functionality
2. Indicative of a situation where there has been a beneficial adjustment or increase in effectiveness
3. Having been made better in quality, function, or condition beyond its previous state

Etymology: The past form "improved" is simply the regular past tense and past participle of "improve," so its history is that of the verb. The verb's surprising story is that it was once tied to money rather than quality. It comes from Anglo-Norman "emprouwer," formed from the Old French prefix "en-" and "prou," meaning "profit," which itself descends from the Vulgar Latin "prode," meaning "advantageous" or "profitable." The original sense was to make a profit from land or to turn something to account, so to improve something was to put it to profitable use. The word's other possible root, the Latin "improbō," meaning "disapprove" or "reject," is a different source. It is a doublet of "improbate," a word that has come to mean roughly the same kind of rejection, showing how one Latin verb entered English twice by separate routes. The "improve" we use now, meaning to make better, grew out of the older profit-making sense and the general idea of turning something to good account.

Synonyms: enhanced, better, upgraded, refined, ameliorated

Antonyms: worsened, deteriorated, declined, regressed, degraded