extraordinary

[ ik-strawr-dn-er-ee, ek-struh-awr- ]

adjective

1. beyond what is usual, ordinary, regular, or established:

   extraordinary costs.

   Synonyms: inordinate

   Antonyms: usual, common

2. exceptional in character, amount, extent, degree, etc.; noteworthy; remarkable:

   extraordinary speed;

   an extraordinary man.

   Synonyms: signal, special, phenomenal, rare, singular, uncommon

   Antonyms: usual, common

3. (of an official, employee, etc.) outside of or additional to the ordinary staff; having a special, often temporary task or responsibility:

   minister extraordinary and plenipotentiary.

extraordinary

/ ɪkˈstrɔːdənrɪ; -dənərɪ /

adjective

1. very unusual, remarkable, or surprising
2. not in an established manner, course, or order
3. employed for particular events or purposes
4. usually postpositive (of an official, etc) additional or subordinate to the usual one

   a minister extraordinary

Derived Forms

• exˈtraordinariness, noun
• exˈtraordinarily, adverb

Other Words From

• ex·traor·di·nar·i·ly [ik-strawr-dn-, air, -, uh, -lee, ek-str, uh, -awr-], adverb
• ex·traordi·nari·ness noun
• unex·traordi·nary adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of extraordinary¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English extraordinarie, from Latin extrāordinārius “beyond ordinary,” equivalent to extra- + ordinary

Word History and Origins

Origin of extraordinary¹

C15: from Latin extraordinārius beyond what is usual; see ordinary

Example Sentences

The Food That Built America, a new podcast from OZY and The History Channel, tells the extraordinary true stories behind some of your favorite foods and brands.

From Ozy

The thing that was so extraordinary about what happened in the pandemic is what happened in August and September.

From Time

As Henderson and Foege detail in their books, there were extraordinary challenges that often looked utterly insurmountable in the quest to eradicate smallpox.

From Vox

On this front, outcomes from the Pfizer and Moderna trials are extraordinary.

From Washington Post

The Food That Built America, a new podcast from OZY and the History Channel, tells the extraordinary true stories behind some of your favorite foods and brands.

From Ozy

This breach is an extraordinary emotional drag on the exhausted population.

From The Daily Beast

And yet our country has redefined citizenship in some extraordinary ways since its inception.

From The Daily Beast

This is an extraordinary recording that deserves to be much better known.

From The Daily Beast

“It is extraordinary that in one week of contemporary art auctions almost $2 billion worth of art was sold,” he says.

From The Daily Beast

The history of horrors in the North Caucasus is so extraordinary and so long as to seem almost otherworldly.

From The Daily Beast

At this moment an extraordinary commotion began among the watches.

From Project Gutenberg

The fingers of all the clocks in the house were revolving with the most extraordinary rapidity--she was helpless.

From Project Gutenberg

An extraordinary eruption of mount Vesuvius commenced, which in ten days had advanced ten miles from its original source.

From Project Gutenberg

Why expect that extraordinary virtues should be in one person united, when one virtue makes a man extraordinary?

From Project Gutenberg

The only thing that at all tended to shake this conviction, was the extraordinary poltroonery of our new captive.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• amazing
• bizarre
• curious
• exceptional
• fantastic
• incredible
• marvelous
• odd
• outstanding
• particular
• phenomenal
• rare
• remarkable
• singular
• special
• strange
• surprising
• terrific
• uncommon
• unheard-of