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ffered or suggested from reflection, etc.; to cause to believe. Beloved, we are persuaded better things of you. Heb. vi. 9.

xpreses himself; diction; expression. "Phrases of the hearth." Tennyson. Thou speak'st In better phrase and matter than thou didst. Shak.

A young or small pike. [Obs.] Bet [better] is, quoth he, a pike than a pickerel. Chaucer.

To unite by a coalescence of parts; to fit together; to join. "It pieced better." Bacon.

Fig.: That which supports or upholds, as a board does a swimmer. His charity is a better plank than the faith of an intolerant and bitter-minded bigot. Southey.

face, usually produced by friction; a gloss or luster. Another prism of clearer glass and better polish. Sir I. Newton.

alt; to promote; as, to prefer an officer to the rank of general. I would prefer him to a better place. Shak.

prevalence of virtue, of a fashion, or of a disease; the prevalence of a rumor. The duke better knew what kind of argument were of prevalence with him. Clarendon.

ing of plaster in work of three coats upon laths. Its surface is scratched once to form a better key for the next coat. In the United States called scratch coat. Brande & C.

gain wealth and power by working upon the religious motives or credulity of others. It is better that men should be governed by priestcraft than by violence. Macaulay.

to believe, but leaves some room for doubt; likely. That is accounted probable which has better arguments producible for it than can be brought against it. South. I do not say that the principles of religion are merely probable; I have before asserted them to be morally certain. Bp. Wilkins.

of a word present an odd or ludicrous idea; a kind of quibble or equivocation. Addison. A better put on this word was made on the Beggar's Opera, which, it was said, made Gay rich, and Rich gay. Walpole.

Clarendon. Cocks and lambs . . . at the mercy of cats and wolves . . . must never expect better quarter. L'Estrange.

over the world. He that is at liberty to ramble in perfect darkness, what is his liberty better than if driven up and down as a bubble by the wind Locke.

A follower of Pierre Ramé, better known as Ramus, a celebrated French scholar, who was professor of rhetoric and philosophy at Paris in the reign of Henry II., and opposed the Aristotelians.

On the other hand; to the contrary of what was said or suggested; instead. Was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse. Mark v. 26.

eed; to regard. [Archaic] This son of mine not recking danger. Sir P. Sidney. And may you better reck the rede Than ever did the adviser. Burns.

r service, loss, etc.; to requite; to remunerate; to compensate. He can not recompense me better. Shak.

To overcome; to get the better of, -- as a state of mind or body. I do hope to recover my late hurt. Cowley. When I had recovered a little my first surprise. De Foe.

That part of a cannon near the breech which is thicker than the rest of the piece, so as better to resist the force of the exploding powder. See Illust. of Cannon. (b) An additional thickness of canvas, cloth, or the like, around an eyelet, buttonhole, etc.