advantage: Meaning and Definition of

ad•van•tage

Pronunciation: (ad-van'tij, -vän'-), [key]
— n., v., -taged, -taging.
—n.
  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 fol. by over or of&hasp;): His height gave him an advantage over his opponent.
  4. a position of superiority (often fol. by over or of&hasp;): their advantage in experienced players.
  5. the first point scored after deuce.
  6. to be in a superior or advantageous position; possess an advantage over: By virtue of independent wealth, he has the advantage of his opponents.
  7. to take advantage of an opportunity.
    1. to make use of for gain:to take advantage of an opportunity.
    2. to impose upon, esp. unfairly, as by exploiting a weakness:to take advantage of someone.
  8. to good effect; advantageously: The paintings were arranged to advantage on one wall.
—v.t.
  1. to be of service to; yield profit or gain to; benefit.
  2. to cause to advance; further; promote: Such action will advantage our cause.
  3. to prove beneficial to; profit: It would advantage him to work harder.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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