betternessn.

a1400 Psalter (Vesp.) li. 3 in C. Horstmann Yorkshire Writers (1896) II. 184 Þou loued iuelnes oure betternes.

1492 in Acts Lords of Council Civil Causes (1839) I. 248 Þe bett [er] nes of þe said tercis [of land].

1528 T. Paynell tr. Arnaldus de Villa Nova in Joannes de Mediolano Regimen Sanitatis Salerni sig. E.iv^v Perauenture Galen vnderstandeth here the betternes [L. melioritatem] of nouryshement of that that is to nourishe moche.

a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1593) iv. sig. Mm6 Your vnmatched betternesse.

?1611 G. Chapman in tr. Homer Iliads ii. Comm. 34 Now compare this with Homers, but in my translation; and iudge if to both their ends, there be any such betternesse in Virgils.

1613 S. Hieron Baptizing of Eunuch iii. 50 There is no betternesse or precedence of one place aboue another for the administration of holy things.

1728 J. Balguy Found. Moral Goodness 10 Whatever shall be assigned as the Ground or Reason of that Goodness, or Betterness; that we may securely pitch upon as a proper Foundation for Virtue.

1796 Theolog. Mag. Mar. 337/1 Make them better, so much better, that it will be suitable for God presently to regenerate and change them, on account of their betterness.

1856 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters III. 132 An infinity of Betterness above other human effort.

1959 P. Grainger Let. 19 Oct. in All-round Man (1994) 281 One is a dullard to do such a trip the wrong way (motor) when the right way (train) is available & offers every possible betterness.

2004 Express (Nexis) 23 Aug. 17 Good taste, of course, is another area in which one's betterness instinctively manifests itself.

c1530 in J. Gutch Collectanea Curiosa (1781) II. 287 Item for the betternes of the golde that went to the same Rings—iiijs.

1660 W. Leybourn tr. J. de Billy in Arithmetick, Vulgar, Decimal, & Instrumental (new ed.) iv. 130 If the whole Ingot 50, be multiplyed by the betternesse required, namely, by 8, they shall produce 400.

1707 J. Ward Young Mathematician's Guide i. x. 118 That betterness, or worsness is reckoned by Carracts and Grains of a Carract in Gold.

1820 G. G. Carey Guide Publ. Funds 99 If gold or silver be finer than standard, the difference is termed betterness by the trade.

1931 Amer. Econ. Rev. 21 683 If a 100 tael lump of silver were actually 1,000 fine it would be marked with a betterness of 6.7.

1978 C. E. Challis Tudor Coinage i. 11 Any difference from the standard—any ‘betterness’ above it or ‘worseness’ below it..was carefully recorded.

1692 S. Catherall Serm. Funeral 24 From the frequent Intervals of a seeming Betterness, her Physicians talked often of the Hopes of a Recovery.

1745 D. De Coetlogon Gothic Oration 11 To talk of Betterness in Affliction, is seldom disagreeable.

1820 A. Opie Tales of Heart (ed. 2) III. 151 My child had just been pronounced better! But what a betterness!

1834 R. Sharp Diary 25 Feb. (1997) 449 I really am very ill in my Arm..the Doctor says it is much better, but for myself I feel no betterness about it.

1864 J. C. Atkinson Whitby Gloss. (at cited word) Betterness..As for my ailment I find no betterness in it.

1923 Humorist 15 Dec. 526/1 (advt.) There is no shock, but the thrill of the electric current is quickly felt by the wearer in a quicker circulation of the blood, a sense of ‘betterness’, an exhilaration of spirits.

2005 R. Douglas Night Song Last Tram 309 She was very ill. There was no betterness for her.