*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of bests

* (end to a letter) Perhaps short for "best regards and best wishes".

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
intj

A polite, formulaic end to a letter or email.

noun

plural of best

verb

third-person singular simple present indicative of best

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

* (end to a letter) Perhaps short for "best regards and best wishes".

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "q",
      "args": {
        "1": "end to a letter"
      },
      "expansion": "(end to a letter)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "best regards",
      "best regards#English"
    ],
    [
      "best wishes",
      "best wishes#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "intj",
      "glosses": [
        "A polite, formulaic end to a letter or email."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "rare"
      ],
      "recordId": "2115d0c3f4dd6d6fddbefeedda4ea3e9dcaa74de214b45ac885a18f85d6c3b0b",
      "rawRecordSha256": "c5b972ad034c82662f172abcfa7be3b6be10847a02b44397f80d11df94b00049",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 690730
    },
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "plural of best"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "form-of",
        "plural"
      ],
      "recordId": "5955d91c1d78dc1655082dbfba4187361912aad6fb1316c0a30ef6a5dfeac57d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "8ca560b8b298dc7e6f4b2d8fc6220ce3ec7e0f740eab244b816b31d63b419f3c",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 690731
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "third-person singular simple present indicative of best"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "form-of",
        "indicative",
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ],
      "recordId": "7846ca9917decf9ff56890b913f65618611be99ceae382a1fbc7152b0da2e809",
      "rawRecordSha256": "c7804b74be1114e286c14035aedfe6af151bfc9292fb9717e28ad26e510bbde2",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 690732
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for bests →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YmVzdHM