exceed

American  

[ik-seed] / ɪkˈsid /

verb (used with object)

1. to go beyond in quantity, degree, rate, etc..

   to exceed the speed limit.

2. to go beyond the bounds or limits of.

   to exceed one's understanding.

   Synonyms:

   transcend, overstep

3. to surpass; be superior to; excel.

   Her performance exceeded all the others.

   Synonyms:

   top, cap, beat, outstrip, outdo

---

verb (used without object)

1. to be greater, as in quantity or degree.

2. to surpass others; excel or be superior.

exceed British  

/ ɪkˈsiːd /

verb

1. to be superior to (a person or thing), esp in size or quality; excel

2. (tr) to go beyond the limit or bounds of

   to exceed one's income

   exceed a speed limit

3. to be greater in degree or quantity than (a person or thing)

---

Other Word Forms

• exceedable adjective
• exceeder noun
• superexceed verb (used without object)
• unexceedable adjective
• unexceeded adjective

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.

Example Sentences

"We expect these trends to continue, and we forecast that the total number of people receiving disability payments in Scotland will exceed one million by 2030-31," said the SFC.

From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026

Musk chimed in on X that a future version, v15, will “far exceed human levels of safety, even in completely unsupervised and complex situations.”

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

Bruce, whose boat, Budding Rose, is based in the Scottish port of Peterhead, estimates the extra costs over a year could exceed £100,000.

From Barron's • Apr. 5, 2026

Since then, they have found that if they didn’t use all of their repair budget one year, they were likely to exceed it the next year.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

The odds were tremendously against the ball carrier, so that Phineas was driven to exceed himself practically every day when he carried the ball.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles

Related Words

• eclipse
• outpace
• outstrip
• top