improvement

improvement
   1. obsolete Scottish
   forcible depopulation
   The Scottish Highland Clearances replaced people by sheep in the glens to increase income for the lairds and chiefs:
    The necessity for reducing the population in order to introduce valuable improvements. (Prebble, 1963, quoting Sir George Stewart Mackenzie of Coul)
   Many of those evicted emigrated to the American colonies, where they stayed loyal to the crown in the War of Independence and subsequently removed themselves to New Scotland, or Nova Scotia, rather than stay among the successful rebels.
   2. a reduction in quality or service
   Any statement that a change introduced by a manufacturer or provider of services will result in improvement for customers should be viewed with suspicion. The only thing it is normally intended to improve is the profitability of the operation:
    Improvement means deterioration. (Hutber's Law, propounded by the former City Editor of the Sunday Telegraph)

How not to say what you mean: A dictionary of euphemisms. . 2014.

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  • improvement — im‧prove‧ment [ɪmˈpruːvmənt] noun [countable, uncountable] the act or state of getting better: improvement in • Canandaigua Wine Co reported a 70% improvement in net income for the third quarter. • An economist said he was optimistic that… …   Financial and business terms

  • Improvement — Im*prove ment, n. 1. The act of improving; advancement or growth; promotion in desirable qualities; progress toward what is better; melioration; as, the improvement of the mind, of land, roads, etc. [1913 Webster] I look upon your city as the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • improvement — im·prove·ment n: a usu. permanent addition to or modification of real property that enhances its capital value and is distinguished from an ordinary repair in being designed to make the property more useful or valuable Merriam Webster’s… …   Law dictionary

  • Improvement — (engl., spr. prūw ), Verbesserung …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • improvement — (n.) mid 15c., enprowment management of something for profit, from Anglo Fr. emprowement, from emprouwer turn to profit (see IMPROVE (Cf. improve)). Meaning betterment; amelioration is from 1640s. Meaning buildings, etc. on a piece of property is …   Etymology dictionary

  • improvement — [n] bettering; something bettered advance, advancement, amelioration, amendment, augmentation, betterment, change, civilization, correction, cultivation, development, elevation, enhancement, enrichment, furtherance, gain, growth, increase,… …   New thesaurus

  • improvement — ► NOUN 1) an instance of improving or being improved. 2) the action of improving or being improved. 3) a thing that makes something better or is better than something else …   English terms dictionary

  • improvement — [im pro͞ov′mənt] n. [Anglo Fr emprowement] 1. an improving or being improved; esp., a) betterment b) an increase in value or in excellence of quality or condition c) Now Rare profitable use 2. a) an addition or …   English World dictionary

  • improvement — noun ADJECTIVE ▪ big, considerable, enormous, great, huge, major, marked, massive, material, radical, remarkable …   Collocations dictionary

  • improvement — n. 1) to bring about an improvement 2) to show (an) improvement 3) a decided, distinct, marked, substantial; minor improvement 4) an improvement in, of (an improvement in her work; an improvement of service) 5) an improvement on, over, upon (this …   Combinatory dictionary

  • improvement — im|prove|ment W2 [ımˈpru:vmənt] n 1.) [U and C] the act of improving something or the state of being improved improvement in/on/to ▪ There s been a big improvement in the children s behaviour. ▪ an improvement on earlier models ▪ We need to carry …   Dictionary of contemporary English

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