adjective
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high or elevated in rank, position, dignity, etc
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elevated in character; noble; lofty
an exalted ideal
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informal excessively high; inflated
he has an exalted opinion of himself
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intensely excited; elated
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of exalted
Explanation
Use the adjective exalted to describe something or someone that is raised in rank, value, or power. The exalted queen enjoyed regular processions in her honor and gifts sent from foreign lands. Exalted goes back to Latin exaltare, combining ex ("up") and altus ("high"). You may not have an exalted position at school — maybe you're even one of the peons who isn't going to have a full-page spread dedicated to their achievements in the yearbook — but you'll always have an exalted role in your family, where your quiet humor and up-for-everything attitude brings your siblings together.
Vocabulary lists containing exalted
Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" Speech (1963)
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An "August" Assortment: Words Worthy of Honor
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"The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin
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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.
In 1922, Jewan Singh & Sons was appointed watchmaker to the governor of the Punjab, His Excellency Sir Edward Maclagan, knight commander of the Most Exalted Order of the Star of India.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 25, 2025
Exalted string quartet devotees belittled film soundtracks, while studio heads had a reputation for shunning classical music longhairs.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 12, 2025
Exalted generations of yore had come into romantic self-possession through war; the boomers’ martial fate was decided for them by social class, family connections, testable intelligence, and in some cases, sheer chutzpah.
From Slate • May 1, 2016
Artist Charles M. Russell paid tribute to elk with his oil painting, “The Exalted Ruler,” painted for his brothers in the Elks Lodge in Great Falls.
From Washington Times • Jan. 21, 2016
“Your Exalted Majesty, you know the Paper answers only once,” the king said.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
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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.