advantage

[ad-van-tij, -vahn-] /ædˈvæn tɪdʒ, -ˈvɑn-/
noun
1.
any state, circumstance, opportunity, or means specially favorable to success, interest, or any desired end:
the advantage of a good education.
2.
benefit; gain; profit:
It will be to his advantage to learn Chinese before going to China.
3.
superiority or ascendancy (often followed by over or of):
His height gave him an advantage over his opponent.
4.
a position of superiority (often followed by over or of):
their advantage in experienced players.
5.
Tennis. the first point scored after deuce.
verb (used with object), advantaged, advantaging.
6.
to be of service to; yield profit or gain to; benefit.
7.
to cause to advance; further; promote:
Such action will advantage our cause.
8.
to prove beneficial to; profit:
It would advantage him to work harder.
Idioms
9.
have the advantage of, to be in a superior or advantageous position; possess an advantage over:
By virtue of independent wealth, he has the advantage of his opponents.
10.
take advantage of,
  1. to make use of for gain:
    to take advantage of an opportunity.
  2. to impose upon, especially unfairly, as by exploiting a weakness:
    to take advantage of someone.
11.
to advantage, to good effect; advantageously:
The paintings were arranged to advantage on one wall.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English ava(u)ntage < Anglo-French, Old French avantage, equivalent to avant before (see advance) + -age -age; for ad- see advance
Synonyms
2. Advantage, benefit, profit all mean something that is of use or value. Advantage is anything that places one in an improved position, especially in coping with competition or difficulties: It is to one's advantage to have traveled widely. Benefit is anything that promotes the welfare or improves the state of a person or group: a benefit to society. Profit is any valuable, useful, or helpful gain: profit from trade or experience. 6. serve, avail, help, aid.
Examples from the web for advantage
  • Ask them to explain the advantages and disadvantages of drawing a map at this close-up level.
  • We ordinary people have the advantage of anonymity.
  • If small size is an advantage, the ceramic heaters are among the smallest.
  • Is she taking advantage of the situation? I also suspect that she is looking for another job.
  • It has, too, the advantage of suggesting responsibleness.
  • Commercial, legal or accountancy experience and knowledge of locally-spoken languages would be an advantage.
  • Too much, and you end up giving the attackers the advantage.
  • The most important advantage of digital photography is how easy it is to use.
  • No evolutionary advantage was evident.
  • The first world power to crack the jet stream mystery will have a distinct advantage for military air supremacy.
British Dictionary definitions for advantage

advantage

/ədˈvɑːntɪdʒ/
noun
1.
often foll by over or of. superior or more favourable position or power: he had an advantage over me because of his experience
2.
benefit or profit (esp in the phrase to one's advantage)
3.
(tennis)
  1. the point scored after deuce
  2. the resulting state of the score
4.
take advantage of
  1. to make good use of
  2. to impose upon the weakness, good nature, etc, of; abuse
  3. to seduce
5.
to advantage, to good effect: he used his height to advantage at the game
6.
you have the advantage of me, you know me but I do not know you
Word Origin
C14: avantage (later altered to advantage on the model of words beginning with Latin ad-), from Old French avant before, from Latin abante from before, away. See advance
Word Origin and History for advantage
n.

early 14c., avantage, "position of being in advance of another," from Old French avantage "advantage, profit, superiority," from avant "before," probably via an unrecorded Late Latin *abantaticum, from Latin abante (see advance).

The -d- is a 16c. intrusion on the analogy of Latin ad- words. Meaning "a favoring circumstance" (the opposite of disadvantage) is from late 15c. Tennis score sense is from 1640s, first recorded in writings of John Milton, of all people. Phrase to take advantage of is first attested late 14c.

Slang definitions & phrases for advantage

advantage

Related Terms

home-court advantage


Idioms and Phrases with advantage

advantage

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