surpass

[ ser-pas, -pahs ]
See synonyms for surpass on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
  1. to go beyond in amount, extent, or degree; be greater than; exceed.

  2. to go beyond in excellence or achievement; be superior to; excel: He surpassed his brother in sports.

  1. to be beyond the range or capacity of; transcend: misery that surpasses description.

Origin of surpass

1
First recorded in 1545–55; from Middle French surpasser; equivalent to sur-1 + pass

synonym study For surpass

2. See excel.

Other words for surpass

Other words from surpass

  • sur·pass·a·ble, adjective
  • sur·pass·er, noun
  • un·sur·pass·a·ble, adjective
  • un·sur·passed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use surpass in a sentence

  • All good critics have agreed that his letters are not surpassed, perhaps not surpassable.

  • That figure represents an ample and rather voluptuous matron, in an attitude of scarcely surpassable grace.

    Beauty | Alexander Walker
  • In the combination of two gifts, music and meaning, he is hardly surpassable at his best by any poet.

    More Pages from a Journal | Mark Rutherford

British Dictionary definitions for surpass

surpass

/ (sɜːˈpɑːs) /


verb(tr)
  1. to be greater than in degree, extent, etc

  2. to be superior to in achievement or excellence

  1. to overstep the limit or range of: the theory surpasses my comprehension

Origin of surpass

1
C16: from French surpasser, from sur- 1 + passer to pass

Derived forms of surpass

  • surpassable, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012