-vmənt noun
( -s )
Etymology: alteration of Middle English emprowment profitable investment, profitable cultivation of land, from Anglo-French emprouement, from emprouer + Old French -ment
1. : the act or process of improving: as
a. : profitable employment or use
the improvement of one's time in reading
b. : betterment
went to college not for a degree but for professional improvement
: amelioration
the improvement of the patient's state of health
c. : the enhancement or augmentation of value or quality : an increasing of profitableness, excellence, or desirability
an improvement of farm stock
an improvement of the property by building several outbuildings and a new barn
an improvement in living standards
2.
a. : the state of being improved ; especially : enhanced value or excellence
saw a great improvement in the man's health and frame of mind
pleased by the improvement of the transportation system
b. : an instance of such improvement : something that improves in this way: as
(1) : a permanent addition to or betterment of real property that enhances its capital value and that involves the expenditure of labor or money and is designed to make the property more useful or valuable as distinguished from ordinary repairs — see beneficial improvement , necessary improvement , voluntary improvement
(2) : an alteration or addition to an existing subject of invention or discovery that does not destroy its identity or essential character but accomplishes greater efficiency or economy : a modification improving and making more valuable an existing discovery or invention