Advantage

How to spell advantage

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce advantage

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does advantage mean?

1. nounA condition or circumstance that puts one in a favourable or superior position.
2. verbTo put in a favourable position; to benefit.

Advantage in a sentence

• noun

  A degree in accounting gave her a clear advantage over the other candidates.

• verb

  The new tax rules will advantage small businesses more than large corporations.

• noun

  Living near the office is a real advantage during the morning commute.

• verb

  An early start can advantage anyone hoping to beat the holiday traffic.

Where does advantage come from?

Language of origin: French

The word entered English in the 1300s from the Old French avantage, which meant a position in front or a superior standing. That French noun was built on avant, meaning 'before' or 'in front', which itself goes back to the Late Latin abante, a fusion of ab ('away from') and ante ('before'). The literal sense was simply being ahead of others, and from that physical notion of leading position grew the modern idea of any favourable condition or benefit. English speakers later added the intrusive 'd' after the initial 'a', reshaping the older avantage into advantage by false analogy with the many Latin words beginning with the prefix ad- ('to'), and that inserted, unetymological 'd' is exactly the letter writers can forget. The same avant root survives in 'advance' and in the borrowed phrase 'avant-garde'.

How the word is built

• ad- (to, toward)
• vant (from Latin abante: before, in front)
• -age (noun suffix)