transcend
Americanverb (used with object)
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to rise above or go beyond; overpass; exceed.
to transcend the limits of thought; kindness transcends courtesy.
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to outdo or exceed in excellence, elevation, extent, degree, etc.; surpass; excel.
- Synonyms:
- outstrip
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Theology. (of the Deity) to be above and independent of (the universe, time, etc.).
verb (used without object)
verb
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to go above or beyond (a limit, expectation, etc), as in degree or excellence
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(tr) to be superior to
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philosophy theol (esp of the Deity) to exist beyond (the material world)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have transcendedperfect
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has transcendedperfect 3rd person singular
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is transcendingprogressive 3rd person singular
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am transcendingprogressive 1st person singular
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are transcendingprogressive
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has been transcendingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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have been transcendingperfect progressive
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transcendingparticiple
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transcendssingular 3rd person
Past
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had transcendedperfect
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was transcendingprogressive singular
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were transcendingprogressive plural
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transcendedparticiple
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had been transcendingperfect progressive
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transcendedsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of transcend
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin trānscendere “to surmount,” from trāns- trans- + -scendere (combining form of scandere “to climb”)
Explanation
It would be nice to transcend the narrow limits of this brief definition, and go to greater lengths to describe this word's glories! Transcend means to move upward and beyond something. No doubt you know about the words transcontinental or maybe trans fats? The prefix trans is used to mean "beyond, across" and transcend takes this even further by adding in a sense of upwardness with the stem cend. A pop artist with a lot of talent might transcend the genre of pop. You can't assume a person's opinion on national security by party affiliation — it often transcends party lines.
Vocabulary lists containing transcend
Grade 9, List 6
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American Born Chinese
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The Book Thief
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Rush may be onto one of its most significant chapters, the one that extends beyond them, in which their music will bond generations and even transcend death.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 8, 2026
"Possibly, this is due to their more egalitarian social systems. Bonobos appear to live together in more fluid relationships, with social bonds that transcend group boundaries, something we rarely see in chimpanzees," explains Van Leeuwen.
From Science Daily • May 31, 2026
Xi, however, said the United States and China could "transcend" this danger.
From Barron's • May 14, 2026
“I have lived the life of man, I live now the life of woman, and one day perhaps I shall transcend both,” Morris wrote in “Conundrum,” a 1974 memoir.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026
The future will erase everything—there's no level of fame or genius that allows you to transcend oblivion.
From "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
