Webster
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Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Worst

Worst (wûrst), a., superl. of Bad. [OE. werst, worste, wurste, AS. wyrst, wierst, wierrest. See Worse, a.] Bad, evil, or pernicious, in the highest degree, whether in a physical or moral sense. See Worse. "Heard so oft in worst extremes." Milton.

I have a wife, the worst that may be. Chaucer.

If thou hadst not been born the worst of men, Thou hadst been a knave and flatterer. Shak.

Worst, n. That which is most bad or evil; the most severe, pernicious, calamitous, or wicked state or degree.

The worst is not So long as we can say, This is the worst. Shak.

He is always sure of finding diversion when the worst comes to the worst. Addison.

Worst, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Worsted; p. pr. & vb. n. Worsting.] [See Worse, v. t. & a.] To gain advantage over, in contest or competition; to get the better of; to defeat; to overthrow; to discomfit.

The . . . Philistines were worsted by the captivated ark. South.

Worst, v. i. To grow worse; to deteriorate. [R.] "Every face . . . worsting." Jane Austen.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Noah Porter, editor (Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913). Public domain. Text as transcribed by MICRA, Inc., from Project Gutenberg. Changed for Deep Dive Bible: Greek, which our source spelled in Latin letters, set in Greek letters; entries of one spelling merged into one article; Greek words our source left out (shown as “?”), read from the 1898 printing, from the same plates (the Library of Congress’s copy), where the place could be found with certainty. Of the others, 1,362 (a word or a single letter each) were inferred by AI from the context by the dictionary’s own rules and are marked with a wavy underline (tap or point at one to see the note); the rest, which could not be inferred with confidence, are left as “?”.