surplus

American  

[sur-pluhs, -pluhs] / ˈsɜr plʌs, -pləs /

noun

1. something that remains above what is used or needed.

   Synonyms:

   superabundance

2. an amount, quantity, etc., greater than needed.

3. agricultural produce or a quantity of food grown by a nation or area in excess of its needs, especially such a quantity of food purchased and stored by a governmental program of guaranteeing farmers a specific price for certain crops.

4. Accounting.

   1. the excess of assets over liabilities accumulated throughout the existence of a business, excepting assets against which stock certificates have been issued; excess of net worth over capital-stock value.

   2. an amount of assets in excess of what is requisite to meet liabilities.

---

adjective

1. being a surplus; being in excess of what is required.

   surplus wheat.

verb (used with object)

surplussed, surplused, surplussing, surplusing

1. to treat as surplus; sell off; retire.

   The government surplussed some of its desert lands.

surplus British  

/ ˈsɜːpləs /

noun

1. a quantity or amount in excess of what is required

2. accounting

   1. an excess of total assets over total liabilities

   2. an excess of actual net assets over the nominal value of capital stock

   3. an excess of revenues over expenditures during a certain period of time

3. economics

   1. an excess of government revenues over expenditures during a certain financial year

   2. an excess of receipts over payments on the balance of payments

---

adjective

1. being in excess; extra

surplus Cultural  

1. An unsold quantity of a good resulting from a lack of equilibrium in a market. For example, if a price is artificially high, sellers will bring more goods to the market than buyers will be willing to buy. (Compare shortage.)

---

Related Words

See remainder.

Etymology

Origin of surplus

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Old French surplus, s(o)urplus, from Medieval Latin superplūs, equivalent to super- preposition and prefix + plūs neuter noun; see origin at super-, plus

Explanation

A surplus is something extra or left over. If your tree produces more apples than you can eat, you can make applesauce with the surplus of apples. The army surplus store sells old or out-of-date clothing and equipment that the military doesn't need. If you earn more money than you spend, then you have a surplus of cash. The word surplus has familiar parts: sur- is a shortened form of super, meaning "extra" or "additional," and plus just means "more."

Example Sentences

Young, who is also chief investment officer at oil-and-gas investment firm Bison Interests, called current oil-supply disruptions “unprecedented” for a market where even a 1 million-barrel-per-day deficit or surplus can materially influence prices.

From MarketWatch • May 5, 2026

The services trade surplus likely widened in the first quarter, with inbound tourism recovering to about 88% of 2018 levels on average.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

Thurmond wants to build 2 million new homes for “working Californians,” in large part by encouraging school districts to build on 75,000 acres of surplus land that they own.

From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026

Canetti said he is confident Houston’s committee will have more money than it needs for the expenses, and any surplus funds would be donated to charitable efforts.

From Salon • Apr. 30, 2026

Once we reached the peak of the greystone hill, I put Denna’s surplus of energy to use and sent her to gather firewood while I made an even larger fire pit than our previous one.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss

Related Words

• excess
• leftover
• unused