at best

ADVERB

partly

Synonyms

STRONGEST

at least partially slightly somewhat

WEAK

at most at worst bit by bit by degrees carelessly halfway in a general way in bits and pieces in part in some measure in some ways inadequately incompletely insufficiently little by little measurably not entirely not fully not strictly speaking not wholly notably noticeably piece by piece piecemeal relatively so far as possible to a certain degree to a certain extent up to a certain point within limits

Antonyms

WEAK

completely totally wholly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That change would likely be cosmetic at best.

From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026

The record of the very largest IPOs is spotty at best.

From Barron's • May 22, 2026

Cloudier skies are likely to keep temperatures at around the low 20s at best.

From BBC • May 22, 2026

The war’s effects on opportunistic aggression are indeterminate at best.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026

“Mr. Stonecrop, tourism is at best a chancy business.”

From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt