AT BEST

= at the best {adv. phr.} 1. Under the best conditions; as the best possibility. * /A coal miner's job is dirty and dangerous at best./ * /We can't get to New York before ten o'clock at best./ Compare: AT MOST. Contrast: AT WORST. 2. In the most favorable way of looking at something; even saying the best about the thing. * The /treasurer had at best been careless with the club's money, but most people thought he had been dishonest./