bettering 

when a significant-other preens his or her loved-one in the morning, or before a party, so that the loved-one appears better socially in order to better represent the significant-other’s choice in a mate

Me: “My girlfriend keeps choosing the outfits that I wear to work, and she also combs my hair every morning.” Friend: “Yeah, she’s bettering you...”

bettering by saucyBdog August 19, 2019

Bettering 

A typo of the word 'Betterish'. Meaning feeling a little better, but not quite.

I'm feeling bettering.

Betterish*

Bettering by Lonefuckingwolf1432 February 4, 2017

bettering 

something said on the phone to me and I was convinced that it WAS a word.... and now it is.

I love you Kyle

he was bettering the butter

bettering by Lisa August 12, 2004

Bettering 

Turning someone into a better person.

I'm bettering you, Zach. You're gonna have thicker skin at the end of your life.

Bettering by Chicken 🐔 February 25, 2019

boxed brown bone-bettering bovine boob beverage 

Chocolate milk that comes in a box

I grabbed a box of boxed brown bone-bettering bovine boob beverage from the school cafeteria.

boxed brown bone-bettering bovine boob beverage by Bobert Boberto December 29, 2017

it gets bettering

Explaining to someone (usually a member of the LGBTQ+ community who is at the beginning of their "coming out" journey) that "it gets better." This could be perceived as patronizing, particularly when offered by someone who doesn't seem to have their life together, but it is well-intentioned.

A reference to the It Gets Better Project storytelling campaign which has helped thousands of LGBTQ+ young people. Used in the HBO Max show, "The Sex Lives of College Girls"

"I'm just calling to check in on you. I could tell you're in a really bad place and I just wanted to say that it gets better."

"Oh my god, are you "it gets bettering" me? Yeah, no, I'm fine. You drive a Ford Windstar. You get better."

it gets bettering by DonnaSummer January 14, 2022

Buttering the cat 

This term began to appear after the December 2021 viral Reddit post "AITA for “perpetuating ethnic stereotypes” about Jorts?" on r/AmITheAsshole by u/ThrowawayOrangeCat about a conflict involving two cats at their workplace. The cats are named Jean and Jorts, and to cut a long story short, a human colleague named Pam had been spreading margarine on Jorts to encourage him to groom himself. (Presumably he would like the taste and spend more time licking it off.) It's unclear whether Jorts responded to this, because Jean began to lick his fur -- this upset her digestive system. Pam was asked to stop applying margarine to Jorts. Readers shared the post to social media, and people began posting memes and jokes about the situation.

Later that month, #DisabilityTwitter used the situation as an analogy, to address whether a particular accommodation is useful. (Implied: even if it's well-intentioned, if it's not helpful to the person with needs, it wastes time and may actually have negative impacts. Just like applying margarine to Jorts.)

"Are you helping, or are you just buttering the cat?" (from #DisabilityTwitter)

A person may want to help resolve a difficult situation, but realizes that they lack the necessary skills and would just make things worse: "I'd love to help, but at this point I suspect I'd just be buttering the cat ..."

Buttering the cat by TapirTrouble December 21, 2021