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
- exaltedly adverb
- exaltedness noun
- self-exalted adjective
- unexalted adjective
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.
Scotland are there and they have a chance to do what none of their exalted predecessors have done.
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
Italy proved they belonged in exalted company against England, one of the pre-tournament favourites.
From Barron's • Feb. 17, 2026
His novel “Caleb Williams” introduces an embattled young hero, born poor and largely self-educated, who perceives justice in exalted terms.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 9, 2026
This level of self-regard in a writer and thinker as justifiably exalted as Smith may explain why our nation is turning on reading: aristocracies breed resentment among the proles.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 28, 2025
It was something to pull me out of my limited mortal ways and thrust me into a state of exalted wonder.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
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.
