Maximiser

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person committed to obtaining the greatest possible benefit or utility in different areas of life, striving to enhance experiences and outcomes
2. An individual who actively works to improve and optimize resources, opportunities, and situations for maximum effectiveness and reward
3. Someone who aims to get the best or most advantageous result in various situations

Etymology: The word is an English agent noun built from "maximize" and the suffix "-er", so it names someone who maximizes. "Maximize" itself comes from the Latin "maximus", meaning "greatest", which is the superlative of "magnus", "large". Latin turned that adjective into a verb, "maximare", and the notion passed into English through the French verb ending "-iser" and the Late Latin "-izare", which is why the verb ends in "-ize" and the agent noun in "-er". The "-er" suffix itself is older and more ordinary. It came down through Old English and Middle French from the Latin "-arius", a common ending for people who practise a trade or hold a role, which is why the same ending appears in "baker" or "teacher". Attaching it to "maximize" gave English a neat label for someone whose whole strategy is to squeeze out the greatest possible gain.

Synonyms: optimiser