adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of excellent
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin excellent-, stem of excellēns, present participle of excellere excel
Explanation
Something excellent is very good, great, or high quality: this is one of the best compliments around. Words like extraordinary and exceptional are similar in meaning to excellent. This is a strong word used mainly for things, people, and actions that are much better than average. A B+ on a test isn't bad, but an A is excellent. In basketball, making an all-star team is excellent. Being excellent is difficult and people tend to admire it. People use excellent in another, less specific way sometimes. If you want to say "Cool" or "Good" you might say "Excellent!"
Vocabulary lists containing excellent
Thumbs Up: Synonyms for "Good"
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Commonly Misspelled Words, List 5
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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.
Cunha wasted some of his excellent approach work.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
“Maybe this is one place where people who are excellent at disagreeing with each other can all kind of agree that there ought to be a space for us,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
Our colleague Ian Prasad Philbrick wrote an excellent breakdown of the result this week.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
There are also excellent reasons to put America’s Christian organizations at the forefront of such charitable work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
“That is an excellent question. I am very glad you asked. I definitely have one. But I am under strict orders not to tell you my command code until you tell me your command code.”
From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown
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.
