exceed
Americanverb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
-
to be greater, as in quantity or degree.
-
to surpass others; excel or be superior.
verb
-
to be superior to (a person or thing), esp in size or quality; excel
-
(tr) to go beyond the limit or bounds of
to exceed one's income
exceed a speed limit
-
to be greater in degree or quantity than (a person or thing)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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exceedernoun
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superexceedverb (used without object)
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exceedableadjective
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unexceedableadjective
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unexceededadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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exceedsimple
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exceedssimple
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have exceededperfect
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has exceededperfect
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am exceedingprogressive
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are exceedingprogressive
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is exceedingprogressive
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have been exceedingperfect progressive
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has been exceedingperfect progressive
Past
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exceededsimple
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had exceededperfect
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was exceedingprogressive
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were exceedingprogressive
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had been exceedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exceed
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English exceden, from Latin excēdere “to go out, go beyond”; equivalent to ex- 1 + cede
Explanation
To exceed is to go beyond expectations, or to go too far. If you exceed the speed limit, you might get a speeding ticket. Exceed and excess share the Latin root excedere meaning to "go beyond." An excess is too much of something, like the piles of candy after Halloween, and exceed means the action of going too far in a good or bad way. You exceed in school when you get straight A's. When Dr. Jekyll transforms into Mr. Hyde, he experiences "a grinding in the bones, deadly nausea, and a horror of the spirit that cannot be exceeded at the hour of birth or death." No thanks! It helps to remember that like speed, exceed ends with -eed.
Vocabulary lists containing exceed
Power Prefix: ex-
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The Bill of Rights
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 3
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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.
See Examples For:
Heatwaves are declared when temperatures reach or exceed a threshold temperature for three consecutive days.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
Yet some older adults, called SuperAgers, reach their 80s and 90s with memory abilities that match or even exceed those of people in their 50s and 60s.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 25, 2026
One good thing about off-sites’ bad rap is that it’s relatively easy to exceed expectations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
"Its timelines far exceed the bid process from Apollo, and it's not linked at all. It's just business as usual from the EU," he added.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
I saw two extraordinary novelties, grandeur competing with splendor and the populace striving to exceed their city.
From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro
MPs are allowed to take on second jobs separate to their work as an MP however, they must record income which exceeds £300 per year.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
After this peak bone loss gradually exceeds bone formation.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026
Her latest fulfills and exceeds the promise of those earlier movies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026
In all three cases, the solar and wind capacity well exceeds that of the data center.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026
I have heard that the hunger for air exceeds as a compelling sensation the thirst for water.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
The drugmaker’s sales grew 6% on a constant exchange rate basis and exceeded analysts’ expectations, according to a company compiled consensus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Google's cloud business grew by more than 80 percent, the company said on Wednesday, which exceeded investor expectations who are looking for signs that the company's AI investments are paying off.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
He published a note Wednesday on the subject of global investment banks and also observed how the U.S. investment banks’ second quarter had far exceeded his own already-constructive expectations.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
Unified students met or exceeded the state standard in English, up 1.9 percentage points from last year.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Beetee smiles at us as if we’ve exceeded his expectations.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
But he also focuses on companies whose “management teams are good at exceeding the expectations that they set.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
The company said the game, “Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced,” had already sold 3.5 million copies, exceeding annual expectations in just 14 days.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
On Wednesday, swathes of other areas, including the central hub of Nagoya and communities near Tokyo in the east, were enduring temperatures approaching or exceeding 40C.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
Hadjar had a 30-place grid penalty for exceeding his allowance of power unit components.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
“I want to make sure I’m not exceeding my budget here.”
From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon
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.
