improvern.¹

Brit.

/ɪmˈpruːvə/, U.S.

/ᵻmˈpruvər/

Forms: 1500s–1600s improuer, 1500s– improver, 1600s improouer.

Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: improve v.², -er suffix¹.

Etymology: < improve v.² + -er suffix¹. With sense 1 compare earlier approver n.²

†1. = approver n.² Obsolete (historical in later use).

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > delegated authority > one having delegated or derived authority > [noun] > steward or bailiff in charge of another's property

town-reeveeOE

reeveeOE

gravec1175

procuratorc1300

dispender1340

provost1340

bailiec1375

officerc1375

dispenserc1380

proctora1382

dispensator1382

farmerc1384

approverc1386

husbanda1387

stewardc1405

chamberlain1423

procurer1477

factor1520

bailiff1528

land-steward1535

improver1536

grieve1537

amtman1582

administrator1596

stead-man1609

dapifer1636

vogt1694

house jobber1709

commissioner1760

foreman1774

house agent1793

ground-officer1815

land-agent1846

wic-reeve1853

steadward1876

house farmer1882

house-knacker1884

land-sergeant1894

1536 Cromwell's Remembrances (MS BL Cotton Titus B I) f. 445 The office of Maister Forstership..iij^l... The office of S[er]ieaunt of peace..iiij^l... The office of improver..lx^s. xd.

1670 T. Blount Νομο-λεξικον: Law-dict. at Approve You may see what kinde of Approvers or Improvers were formerly in the Marches of Wales, authorized by the Prince thereof.

†2. A person who or thing which increases something in amount or degree. Obsolete.In quot. 1612: a person who raises rent; cf. improve v.² 5.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > quantity > increase in quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > one who or that which increases

enhancera1425

morerc1450

augmentor1485

increaser1528

augmenter1539

amplifier1546

adder1547

magnifier1550

improver1607

booster1917

builder-upper1936

1607 R. C. tr. H. Estienne World of Wonders i. ix. 9 Men in those dayes were..improuers [Fr. fort songneux] also in increasing their stocke by adding of new.

1612 F. Rollenson Twelue Prophetical Legacies v. 106 The Improuer & enhauncer of his Rentes, by whose crueltie it comes to passe, that Beggarie like a weede ouer-runs the Commonwealth.

1644 S. Torshell Hypocrite Discovered ii. i. 89 That little encreaseth to a rich stock, for sincerity is a great improver.

1706 Rev. State Eng. Nation 3 Jan. 6/2 The Merchant is the Support, and Improver of Power, Learning, and Fortunes.

1726 J. Dart Hist. & Antiq. Cathedral Church Canterbury 25 He was a great Repairer of that Church and improver of its Income.

3. Also (in later specific use) with capital initial. A person who cultivates or develops land, in order to make it more productive or profitable. In later use frequently: spec. a landowner or developer involved in the Highland clearances (Highland clearances n. at highland n. and adj. Compounds). Now historical except as merged in sense 4.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > reclamation > [noun] > reclaimer or improver

inner1596

improver1610

reclaimer1861

1610 W. Folkingham Feudigraphia To Rdr. sig. A4 It behoues an honest and faithfull Feudigrapher..to approue himselfe an intelligent and diligent-Improuer.

1649 W. Blith (title) English improver; or, a new survey of husbandry.

?1740 Laird & Farmer xiv. 91 The Master, who is in one Year a Replenisher, an Improver of Ground, and..laying a Plan for a fine Mansion-House.

1784 A. Wight Present State Husbandry in Scotl. III: Pt. ii. 519 In his management as an improver, he shows skill and dexterity rarely to be met with.

1837 J. R. McCulloch Statist. Acct. Brit. Empire I. iii. i. 552 In 1723, a Society of Improvers was established at Edinburgh.

1874 W. T. Thornton Plea for Peasant Proprietors (new ed.) ii. 73 Certain modern improvers may perhaps be glad to learn that their own clearances can be justified by such illustrious precedents.

1907 Proc. Washington State Bar Assoc. 165 Where an improver is granted the right to purchase tide lands.., such right extends only to such lands as are actually improved.

1973 G. Whittington in A. R. H. Baker & R. A. Butlin Stud. Field Syst. Brit. Isles xii. 552 The countryside was in a state common to much of Scotland at a period before the Improvers had really begun their work in full.

2007 T. Waters Persistence of Subsistence Agric. iii. 61 The point, the Improvers wrote, was to make the agricultural lands of Scotland productive in the same way that factories in Glasgow and London were.

4. A person who brings something or (occasionally) someone into a more valuable, desirable, or serviceable state or condition; a person who advances or develops something.Also with modifying word specifying the thing improved.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [noun] > one who improves

mendera1382

raisera1400

betterer1600

improver1613

meliorator1782

ameliorator1930

1613 D. Price Teares shed over Abner 25 in Spirituall Odours The souldiour is..the most laudable improver of his Country.

1646 J. Lilburne Londons Liberty in Chains 29 Impossible it is, that their power should be above the power of their begetter, or Improver, the King.

a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) i. 41 Eminent Improvers of an art may be allowed for the Co-inventers thereof.

1713 J. Gay in Guardian 1 Sept. 2/1 I would counsel all our Improvers of Fashion always to take the Hint from France.

1758 J. Lawson Lect. conc. Oratory ii. 31 Socrates, the great Improver of human Reason, was also an Improver of Eloquence.

1767 J. Priestley Hist. & Present State Electr. i. i. 10 Otto Guericke..is likewise intitled to a distinguished place among the first improvers of electricity.

1807 G. Chalmers Caledonia I. ii. vi. 310 The monks were..the improvers of themselves, and the instructers of others, in the most useful arts.

1842 E. B. Barrett Bk. Poets in Athenæum 4 June 499/2 An improver of the language.

1865 J. B. Mozley 8 Lect. Miracles vii. 145 The Church was the great manumitter and improver of the condition of the serf.

1909 Pop. Electr. Dec. 547/1 This rule..does not permit an improver of a known machine to hold as an infringer the inventor of a substantially different improvement.

1989 T. R. Edwards in R. Poirier Raritan Reading (1990) 72 A domineering bully and would-be improver of deficient males like her feckless nephew.

2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 22 Feb. (Arts & Leisure section) 15/1 She is like a relentless home improver who adds a new wing, tears down the back porch and replaces it with a deck.

†5. A person who makes the most of his or her time, an opportunity, etc.; a person who turns something to good account. Cf. improve v.² 4b. Obsolete.In quot. 1702: a person who exhibits or cultivates a quality to advantageous effect.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > advantage > [noun] > turning to account > one who

improver1642

exploiterer1853

exploiter1870

sexploiter1942

1642 A. Grosse Myst. Self-denyall xvii, in Sweet & Soule-perswading Inducements 223 The..most thankefull for all blessings, the best receiver and improver of Gods mercies.

1662 E. Stillingfleet Origines Sacræ iii. ii. §18 This great improver and discoverer of the Mechanicall power of matter.

1702 Clarendon's Hist. Rebellion I. i. 48 The greatest..improvers of that Breeding, and those Qualifications, with which Courts used to be adorn'd.

1740 E. Smith Forty Two Serm. I. xv. 279 We determine with ourselves to be constant Improvers of those recurring Times and Opportunities that are meetest for it [sc. serious reflection].

1808 Amer. Reg. 1807 II. 83/1 She was a most diligent improver of time; she considered her glass as continually running, and every sand to be accounted for.

1879 E. P. W. Packard Great Drama IV. 205 He takes capacities from the abuser of His gifts, and bestows capacities upon the improver of His gifts.

1905 Ohio Archæol. & Hist. Publ. 15 217 Indefatigable in his efforts for the development of all that was best in him, an improver of opportunities.

a. A thing which increases the value, quality, condition, or standard of something.Now frequently with modifying word specifying the thing improved.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [noun] > that which improves

plough1526

improver1651

ameliorator1794

ameliorative1816

meliorant1920

upgrade1979

1651 in S. Hartlib Legacie 11 Gardening, though it be a wonderfull improver of lands.

1669 E. Stillingfleet Serm. (1673) ix. 167 Cold and nakedness,..racks and torments? Are these the improvers of an excellent constitution?

1732 W. Ellis Pract. Farmer 29 French-Wheat..is the greatest Improver of poor sandy Ground.

1753 W. Hogarth Anal. Beauty xiv. 118 Time is a great improver of good pictures.

1858 Jrnl. Soc. of Arts 1 Oct. 656/2 The locust pods..were first introduced at a high price in the chemists' shops as an improver of the voice.

1871 Rural Carolinian Oct. 54/1 It [sc. the persimmon] is an improver of land.

1942 Life 19 Oct. 137/2 Coffee is..a fatigue-fighter, faculty-sharpener, efficiency-improver.

1962 E. Geiger & G. Borgstrom in G. Borgstrom Fish as Food II. ii. 77 Fish flour is particularly suitable as an improver of diets where this staple [sc. rice] predominates.

2012 Earthmovers Apr. 79/2 The additive that is used by oil companies to make the oil multi-grade—called a viscosity index improver.

b. A substance added to a foodstuff or beverage by a manufacturer or processor in order to improve it in appearance, texture, etc.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > substances for food preparation > [noun] > improver or adulterant

doctor1770

stuff1812

improver1835

rough1855

agene1921

1835 Southern Agriculturist Sept. 502 He had tried the effect of carrots as an improver of butter, for several weeks.

1849 J. M. Wilson Rural Cycl. III. 928/1 Potato flour..serves..as an improver of some kinds of wheat flour.

1879 Money Market Rev. 29 Nov. 586/1 (advt.) Mochara, the produce of ripe figs, is the best Coffee improver ever introduced to impart colour, rich body, mellow flavour.

1925 T. Mojonnier & H. C. Troy Techn. Control Dairy Products (ed. 2) xiii. 300 ‘Ice cream improvers’..react upon the casein in the mix, causing an increase in the viscosity.

1960 W. J. France Breadmaking & Flour Confectionary xi. 109 These sugars because of their colour, are useful brown bread improvers, adding a characteristic flavour to brown breads.

2004 F. Lawrence Not on Label iv. 106 Ingredient manufacturers and bakers regard their improvers as commercially sensitive and are not overeager to tell you what is in them.

c. A stuffed pad or wire frame worn below the waist under a woman's skirt to distend it, esp. at the back; a bustle (bustle n.²). Cf. dress improver n. at dress n. Compounds 1c. Now historical.In quot. 1844 probably punning on bustle n.¹

ΘΚΠ

the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > underwear > [noun] > contrivance for expanding skirts > bustle, pads, or cushion

bum roll1602

roll1602

Scotch bum1607

Scotch fall1607

rump roll1707

rump1710

bustle1786

bustler1787

cushion1806

dress improver1842

improver1844

bishopa1860

tournure1872

1844 Welshman 18 Oct. 4/5 ‘I was never in such a bustle before,’ as the lady said of her improver.

1872 Young Englishwoman Oct. 554/1 The improver consists of a thick calico foundation stiffened with whalebone..furnished with strings to tie round the waist.

1884 Pall Mall Gaz. 6 Sept. 7/2 She was searched, and her ‘improver’ was found to be so arranged as to hold 6 lb. of smuggled tobacco.

1922 E. Scott Dancing for Strength & Beauty iv. 58 Her ‘improver’—which happened to be the article then in vogue—was enormous.

1995 H. Vellacott Diary of Lady's Maid 10 It [sc. a mirror] reassured the wearer that her improver was in its right position and was supporting her bustle and train.

a. A person, esp. a young person, working entirely or partly without wages for the purpose of improving his or her knowledge of or skill at a particular trade. Now historical.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to status > [noun] > apprentice or learner

apprentice1362

prenticec1390

craftschild1561

improver1845

trainee1927

YOP1978

1845 Missionary Mag. June 11 (advt.) Situation Wanted for a Youth, aged 18 years, as an Improver, who has been employed in the Country Trade.

1895 Westm. Gaz. 18 Sept. 3/1 His favourite plan is to take a situation as ‘improver’ to a working jeweller in a small way of business.

1909 Daily Chron. 2 Feb. 9/4 Artificial Flower Mounters, Picqueters, and Improvers wanted.

2011 Victorian Nov. 25/3 The final partnership..was with Alfred Yeates, who had joined the office in 1889 as an improver.

b. A person who is no longer classed as a novice or beginner, but is still at the early stages of learning a particular skill (now esp. a student enrolled in a course).

ΘΚΠ

society > education > learning > learner > [noun] > one making progress

profitera1425

proficient1598

improver1892

1892 Answers to Schedules of Questions Royal Comm. Labour 118 in Parl. Papers (C. 6795-IX) XXXVI. iv. 1 Everyone learning the trade whether improver or beginner should be apprenticed for a time.

1921 Guernsey Breeders' Jrnl. 15 Apr. 458/2 The other larger class, who are either improvers or beginners.

1987 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) (Nexis) 6 Mar. The improver's course bridges the gap between beginners and those ready to take the intermediate course.

2002 Derbyshire Times 19 Dec. 60/1 The day courses are for beginners and improvers.

8. A domestic animal, esp. a breeding male, which is considered to improve the genetic stock of a herd or breed. Frequently as final element, as breed improver, herd improver.

ΚΠ

1861 Farmer's Mag. July 188 He makes frequent allusion to this bull as his great herd improver.

1919 Duroc Digest 15 Dec. 157/2 He [sc. the herd boar] is a real breed improver and Mr. Moser is very fortunate in securing such a herd boar for the benefit of his many customers.

1978 Integrity Frozen Spermatozoa 170 Because of the upward genetic trend in the cattle industry, a bull that was an outstanding herd improver 10 yr ago tends to be a very average bull today.

2007 Anthropol. Today 23 5/2 If the genetic evaluation of the descending line is satisfactory, the bull is accepted as a ‘breed improver’ and its semen is marketed.

Derivatives

† improveress n. Obsolete a female improver.Apparently an isolated use.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [noun] > one who improves > female

improveress1744

1744 J. Paterson Compl. Comm. Paradise Lost 305 Ceres was an inventress or improveress of husbandry.

imˈprovership n. now historical the position of an improver (sense 7).

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > position or job > [noun] > position or office of specific workers

plumbership1455

portership1521

clerkship1531

factorshipc1550

pavership1597

mastership1688

private secretaryship1789

writership1810

taskmastership1815

factoryship1836

engineership1839

foremanship1853

improvership1864

call boy1877

gaffership1895

producership1924

operatorship1934

1864 Temple Bar Apr. 36 The waiters were..mostly sons of other hotel-keepers serving an apprenticeship, or ‘improvership’, before they went into business on their own account.

1913 Tile Layers & Helpers Jrnl. Oct. 15/2 Helpers..were entitled to Improverships.

2009 Sunday Mail (S. Austral.) (Nexis) 31 May 4 He took an ‘improvership’ course in plumbing, then set up his own business.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2015; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	improver
释义	improvern.¹ Brit. /ɪmˈpruːvə/, U.S. /ᵻmˈpruvər/ Forms: 1500s–1600s improuer, 1500s– improver, 1600s improouer. Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: improve v.², -er suffix¹. Etymology: < improve v.² + -er suffix¹. With sense 1 compare earlier approver n.² †1. = approver n.² Obsolete (historical in later use). ΘΚΠ society > authority > delegated authority > one having delegated or derived authority > [noun] > steward or bailiff in charge of another's property town-reeveeOE reeveeOE gravec1175 procuratorc1300 dispender1340 provost1340 bailiec1375 officerc1375 dispenserc1380 proctora1382 dispensator1382 farmerc1384 approverc1386 husbanda1387 stewardc1405 chamberlain1423 procurer1477 factor1520 bailiff1528 land-steward1535 improver1536 grieve1537 amtman1582 administrator1596 stead-man1609 dapifer1636 vogt1694 house jobber1709 commissioner1760 foreman1774 house agent1793 ground-officer1815 land-agent1846 wic-reeve1853 steadward1876 house farmer1882 house-knacker1884 land-sergeant1894 1536 Cromwell's Remembrances (MS BL Cotton Titus B I) f. 445 The office of Maister Forstership..iij^l... The office of S[er]ieaunt of peace..iiij^l... The office of improver..lx^s. xd. 1670 T. Blount Νομο-λεξικον: Law-dict. at Approve You may see what kinde of Approvers or Improvers were formerly in the Marches of Wales, authorized by the Prince thereof. †2. A person who or thing which increases something in amount or degree. Obsolete.In quot. 1612: a person who raises rent; cf. improve v.² 5. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > quantity > increase in quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > one who or that which increases enhancera1425 morerc1450 augmentor1485 increaser1528 augmenter1539 amplifier1546 adder1547 magnifier1550 improver1607 booster1917 builder-upper1936 1607 R. C. tr. H. Estienne World of Wonders i. ix. 9 Men in those dayes were..improuers [Fr. fort songneux] also in increasing their stocke by adding of new. 1612 F. Rollenson Twelue Prophetical Legacies v. 106 The Improuer & enhauncer of his Rentes, by whose crueltie it comes to passe, that Beggarie like a weede ouer-runs the Commonwealth. 1644 S. Torshell Hypocrite Discovered ii. i. 89 That little encreaseth to a rich stock, for sincerity is a great improver. 1706 Rev. State Eng. Nation 3 Jan. 6/2 The Merchant is the Support, and Improver of Power, Learning, and Fortunes. 1726 J. Dart Hist. & Antiq. Cathedral Church Canterbury 25 He was a great Repairer of that Church and improver of its Income. 3. Also (in later specific use) with capital initial. A person who cultivates or develops land, in order to make it more productive or profitable. In later use frequently: spec. a landowner or developer involved in the Highland clearances (Highland clearances n. at highland n. and adj. Compounds). Now historical except as merged in sense 4. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > reclamation > [noun] > reclaimer or improver inner1596 improver1610 reclaimer1861 1610 W. Folkingham Feudigraphia To Rdr. sig. A4 It behoues an honest and faithfull Feudigrapher..to approue himselfe an intelligent and diligent-Improuer. 1649 W. Blith (title) English improver; or, a new survey of husbandry. ?1740 Laird & Farmer xiv. 91 The Master, who is in one Year a Replenisher, an Improver of Ground, and..laying a Plan for a fine Mansion-House. 1784 A. Wight Present State Husbandry in Scotl. III: Pt. ii. 519 In his management as an improver, he shows skill and dexterity rarely to be met with. 1837 J. R. McCulloch Statist. Acct. Brit. Empire I. iii. i. 552 In 1723, a Society of Improvers was established at Edinburgh. 1874 W. T. Thornton Plea for Peasant Proprietors (new ed.) ii. 73 Certain modern improvers may perhaps be glad to learn that their own clearances can be justified by such illustrious precedents. 1907 Proc. Washington State Bar Assoc. 165 Where an improver is granted the right to purchase tide lands.., such right extends only to such lands as are actually improved. 1973 G. Whittington in A. R. H. Baker & R. A. Butlin Stud. Field Syst. Brit. Isles xii. 552 The countryside was in a state common to much of Scotland at a period before the Improvers had really begun their work in full. 2007 T. Waters Persistence of Subsistence Agric. iii. 61 The point, the Improvers wrote, was to make the agricultural lands of Scotland productive in the same way that factories in Glasgow and London were. 4. A person who brings something or (occasionally) someone into a more valuable, desirable, or serviceable state or condition; a person who advances or develops something.Also with modifying word specifying the thing improved. ΘΚΠ the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [noun] > one who improves mendera1382 raisera1400 betterer1600 improver1613 meliorator1782 ameliorator1930 1613 D. Price Teares shed over Abner 25 in Spirituall Odours The souldiour is..the most laudable improver of his Country. 1646 J. Lilburne Londons Liberty in Chains 29 Impossible it is, that their power should be above the power of their begetter, or Improver, the King. a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) i. 41 Eminent Improvers of an art may be allowed for the Co-inventers thereof. 1713 J. Gay in Guardian 1 Sept. 2/1 I would counsel all our Improvers of Fashion always to take the Hint from France. 1758 J. Lawson Lect. conc. Oratory ii. 31 Socrates, the great Improver of human Reason, was also an Improver of Eloquence. 1767 J. Priestley Hist. & Present State Electr. i. i. 10 Otto Guericke..is likewise intitled to a distinguished place among the first improvers of electricity. 1807 G. Chalmers Caledonia I. ii. vi. 310 The monks were..the improvers of themselves, and the instructers of others, in the most useful arts. 1842 E. B. Barrett Bk. Poets in Athenæum 4 June 499/2 An improver of the language. 1865 J. B. Mozley 8 Lect. Miracles vii. 145 The Church was the great manumitter and improver of the condition of the serf. 1909 Pop. Electr. Dec. 547/1 This rule..does not permit an improver of a known machine to hold as an infringer the inventor of a substantially different improvement. 1989 T. R. Edwards in R. Poirier Raritan Reading (1990) 72 A domineering bully and would-be improver of deficient males like her feckless nephew. 2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 22 Feb. (Arts & Leisure section) 15/1 She is like a relentless home improver who adds a new wing, tears down the back porch and replaces it with a deck. †5. A person who makes the most of his or her time, an opportunity, etc.; a person who turns something to good account. Cf. improve v.² 4b. Obsolete.In quot. 1702: a person who exhibits or cultivates a quality to advantageous effect. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > advantage > [noun] > turning to account > one who improver1642 exploiterer1853 exploiter1870 sexploiter1942 1642 A. Grosse Myst. Self-denyall xvii, in Sweet & Soule-perswading Inducements 223 The..most thankefull for all blessings, the best receiver and improver of Gods mercies. 1662 E. Stillingfleet Origines Sacræ iii. ii. §18 This great improver and discoverer of the Mechanicall power of matter. 1702 Clarendon's Hist. Rebellion I. i. 48 The greatest..improvers of that Breeding, and those Qualifications, with which Courts used to be adorn'd. 1740 E. Smith Forty Two Serm. I. xv. 279 We determine with ourselves to be constant Improvers of those recurring Times and Opportunities that are meetest for it [sc. serious reflection]. 1808 Amer. Reg. 1807 II. 83/1 She was a most diligent improver of time; she considered her glass as continually running, and every sand to be accounted for. 1879 E. P. W. Packard Great Drama IV. 205 He takes capacities from the abuser of His gifts, and bestows capacities upon the improver of His gifts. 1905 Ohio Archæol. & Hist. Publ. 15 217 Indefatigable in his efforts for the development of all that was best in him, an improver of opportunities. 6. a. A thing which increases the value, quality, condition, or standard of something.Now frequently with modifying word specifying the thing improved. ΘΚΠ the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [noun] > that which improves plough1526 improver1651 ameliorator1794 ameliorative1816 meliorant1920 upgrade1979 1651 in S. Hartlib Legacie 11 Gardening, though it be a wonderfull improver of lands. 1669 E. Stillingfleet Serm. (1673) ix. 167 Cold and nakedness,..racks and torments? Are these the improvers of an excellent constitution? 1732 W. Ellis Pract. Farmer 29 French-Wheat..is the greatest Improver of poor sandy Ground. 1753 W. Hogarth Anal. Beauty xiv. 118 Time is a great improver of good pictures. 1858 Jrnl. Soc. of Arts 1 Oct. 656/2 The locust pods..were first introduced at a high price in the chemists' shops as an improver of the voice. 1871 Rural Carolinian Oct. 54/1 It [sc. the persimmon] is an improver of land. 1942 Life 19 Oct. 137/2 Coffee is..a fatigue-fighter, faculty-sharpener, efficiency-improver. 1962 E. Geiger & G. Borgstrom in G. Borgstrom Fish as Food II. ii. 77 Fish flour is particularly suitable as an improver of diets where this staple [sc. rice] predominates. 2012 Earthmovers Apr. 79/2 The additive that is used by oil companies to make the oil multi-grade—called a viscosity index improver. b. A substance added to a foodstuff or beverage by a manufacturer or processor in order to improve it in appearance, texture, etc. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > substances for food preparation > [noun] > improver or adulterant doctor1770 stuff1812 improver1835 rough1855 agene1921 1835 Southern Agriculturist Sept. 502 He had tried the effect of carrots as an improver of butter, for several weeks. 1849 J. M. Wilson Rural Cycl. III. 928/1 Potato flour..serves..as an improver of some kinds of wheat flour. 1879 Money Market Rev. 29 Nov. 586/1 (advt.) Mochara, the produce of ripe figs, is the best Coffee improver ever introduced to impart colour, rich body, mellow flavour. 1925 T. Mojonnier & H. C. Troy Techn. Control Dairy Products (ed. 2) xiii. 300 ‘Ice cream improvers’..react upon the casein in the mix, causing an increase in the viscosity. 1960 W. J. France Breadmaking & Flour Confectionary xi. 109 These sugars because of their colour, are useful brown bread improvers, adding a characteristic flavour to brown breads. 2004 F. Lawrence Not on Label iv. 106 Ingredient manufacturers and bakers regard their improvers as commercially sensitive and are not overeager to tell you what is in them. c. A stuffed pad or wire frame worn below the waist under a woman's skirt to distend it, esp. at the back; a bustle (bustle n.²). Cf. dress improver n. at dress n. Compounds 1c. Now historical.In quot. 1844 probably punning on bustle n.¹ ΘΚΠ the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > underwear > [noun] > contrivance for expanding skirts > bustle, pads, or cushion bum roll1602 roll1602 Scotch bum1607 Scotch fall1607 rump roll1707 rump1710 bustle1786 bustler1787 cushion1806 dress improver1842 improver1844 bishopa1860 tournure1872 1844 Welshman 18 Oct. 4/5 ‘I was never in such a bustle before,’ as the lady said of her improver. 1872 Young Englishwoman Oct. 554/1 The improver consists of a thick calico foundation stiffened with whalebone..furnished with strings to tie round the waist. 1884 Pall Mall Gaz. 6 Sept. 7/2 She was searched, and her ‘improver’ was found to be so arranged as to hold 6 lb. of smuggled tobacco. 1922 E. Scott Dancing for Strength & Beauty iv. 58 Her ‘improver’—which happened to be the article then in vogue—was enormous. 1995 H. Vellacott Diary of Lady's Maid 10 It [sc. a mirror] reassured the wearer that her improver was in its right position and was supporting her bustle and train. 7. a. A person, esp. a young person, working entirely or partly without wages for the purpose of improving his or her knowledge of or skill at a particular trade. Now historical. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to status > [noun] > apprentice or learner apprentice1362 prenticec1390 craftschild1561 improver1845 trainee1927 YOP1978 1845 Missionary Mag. June 11 (advt.) Situation Wanted for a Youth, aged 18 years, as an Improver, who has been employed in the Country Trade. 1895 Westm. Gaz. 18 Sept. 3/1 His favourite plan is to take a situation as ‘improver’ to a working jeweller in a small way of business. 1909 Daily Chron. 2 Feb. 9/4 Artificial Flower Mounters, Picqueters, and Improvers wanted. 2011 Victorian Nov. 25/3 The final partnership..was with Alfred Yeates, who had joined the office in 1889 as an improver. b. A person who is no longer classed as a novice or beginner, but is still at the early stages of learning a particular skill (now esp. a student enrolled in a course). ΘΚΠ society > education > learning > learner > [noun] > one making progress profitera1425 proficient1598 improver1892 1892 Answers to Schedules of Questions Royal Comm. Labour 118 in Parl. Papers (C. 6795-IX) XXXVI. iv. 1 Everyone learning the trade whether improver or beginner should be apprenticed for a time. 1921 Guernsey Breeders' Jrnl. 15 Apr. 458/2 The other larger class, who are either improvers or beginners. 1987 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) (Nexis) 6 Mar. The improver's course bridges the gap between beginners and those ready to take the intermediate course. 2002 Derbyshire Times 19 Dec. 60/1 The day courses are for beginners and improvers. 8. A domestic animal, esp. a breeding male, which is considered to improve the genetic stock of a herd or breed. Frequently as final element, as breed improver, herd improver. ΚΠ 1861 Farmer's Mag. July 188 He makes frequent allusion to this bull as his great herd improver. 1919 Duroc Digest 15 Dec. 157/2 He [sc. the herd boar] is a real breed improver and Mr. Moser is very fortunate in securing such a herd boar for the benefit of his many customers. 1978 Integrity Frozen Spermatozoa 170 Because of the upward genetic trend in the cattle industry, a bull that was an outstanding herd improver 10 yr ago tends to be a very average bull today. 2007 Anthropol. Today 23 5/2 If the genetic evaluation of the descending line is satisfactory, the bull is accepted as a ‘breed improver’ and its semen is marketed. Derivatives † improveress n. Obsolete a female improver.Apparently an isolated use. ΘΚΠ the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > improvement > [noun] > one who improves > female improveress1744 1744 J. Paterson Compl. Comm. Paradise Lost 305 Ceres was an inventress or improveress of husbandry. imˈprovership n. now historical the position of an improver (sense 7). ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > position or job > [noun] > position or office of specific workers plumbership1455 portership1521 clerkship1531 factorshipc1550 pavership1597 mastership1688 private secretaryship1789 writership1810 taskmastership1815 factoryship1836 engineership1839 foremanship1853 improvership1864 call boy1877 gaffership1895 producership1924 operatorship1934 1864 Temple Bar Apr. 36 The waiters were..mostly sons of other hotel-keepers serving an apprenticeship, or ‘improvership’, before they went into business on their own account. 1913 Tile Layers & Helpers Jrnl. Oct. 15/2 Helpers..were entitled to Improverships. 2009 Sunday Mail (S. Austral.) (Nexis) 31 May 4 He took an ‘improvership’ course in plumbing, then set up his own business. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2015; most recently modified version published online June 2022). † improvern.² Forms: see improve v.¹ and -er suffix¹. Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: improve v.¹, -er suffix¹. Etymology: < improve v.¹ + -er suffix¹. N.E.D. (1899) gives the stress on the second syllable. Obsolete. Chiefly Scottish in later use. A person who disproves, refutes, or rejects something. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > testing > refutation, disproof > [noun] > one who refutes improver1566 refuter1583 confuter1589 confutant1642 refeller1652 disprover1682 exploder1776 confutator1849 invalidator1869 1566 J. Rastell Treat.: Beware of M. Iewel ii. ix. f. 172 M. Iewel..spareth not to cal men..Deniers of Christs institution, Improuers of Gods commaundement. 1573 J. Bridges Supremacie Christian Princes sig. E.ij This belike were euen dealing with you, to let you haue so large scope to proue articles, as the improuer may haue to confute them. 1581 J. Hamilton Catholik Traictise sig. Tviii^v The deulish falsett of the improuaris of gude varkis. 1611 J. Florio Queen Anna's New World of Words Improuatore, an improouer. 1678 G. Mackenzie Laws & Customes Scotl. i. xxvii. 275 It was relevant for the improver to offer to prove that at the date of that bond the Earle of Southesk had no servant who could write such a bond. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2015; most recently modified version published online March 2019). < n.¹1536n.²1566
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improvern.1

Derivatives

† improvern.2

improvern.¹

† improvern.²