excel

[ ik-sel ]

/ ɪkˈsɛl /

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verb (used without object), ex·celled, ex·cel·ling.

to surpass others or be superior in some respect or area; do extremely well: to excel in math.

verb (used with object), ex·celled, ex·cel·ling.

to surpass; be superior to; outdo: He excels all other poets of his day.

Nearby words

excavator, exceed, exceedance, exceeding, exceedingly, excel, excellence, excellency, excellent, excelsior, excelsior springs

Origin of excel

1400–50; late Middle English excellen < Latin excellere, equivalent to ex- ex-¹ + -cellere to rise high, tower (akin to celsus high)

SYNONYMS FOR excel

2 outstrip, eclipse, transcend, exceed, top, beat. Excel, outdo, surpass imply being better than others or being superior in achievement. To excel is to be superior in some quality, attainment, or performance: to excel opponents at playing chess. To outdo is to make more successful effort than others: to outdo competitors in the high jump. To surpass is to go beyond others, especially in a contest as to quality or ability: to surpass one's classmates in knowledge of corporation law.

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Related forms

un·ex·celled, adjectiveun·ex·cel·ling, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for excel

Life seemed to have little meaning; a need to excel was almost gone.
How His West Point Football Experience Inspired Eisenhower|Nicolaus Mills|November 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Can it be exported to Excel, or a comma-separated file, for instance?
Self-Tracking for N00bz|Jamie Todd Rubin|July 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In her own way, Woodley is inspiring young women to succeed and excel.
Lana Del Rey and the Fault in Our ‘Feminist’ Stars|Amy Zimmerman|June 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One of her deputy chiefs of staff keeps track of the tracker, an Excel spreadsheet, she says.
Obama’s Hidden Power Player|Eleanor Clift|May 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST

It made my journey a longer one, but I really wanted to excel in the theater.
Meet the Red Viper: Pedro Pascal on Game of Thrones’ Kinky, Bisexual Hellraiser|Marlow Stern|March 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The children then endeavor to excel each other in writing down the names of the objects which they have seen.
Memory|William Walker Atkinson
My vanity was cruelly mortified after all my efforts to excel.
Letters of Lt.-Col. George Brenton Laurie|George Brenton Laurie
He was26 an apt student and always recited well, with a great ambition to excel in everything.
The Home Life of Poe|Susan Archer Weiss
His pianos were universally regarded as the best in the market, and his competitors were unable to excel him.
Great Fortunes, and How They Were Made|James D. McCabe, Jr.
When scenes of strong passion are wanted, the Germans, I think, excel their French rivals.
Confessions of an Opera Singer|Kathleen Howard

British Dictionary definitions for excel

excel

/ (ɪkˈsɛl) /

verb -cels, -celling or -celled

to be superior to (another or others); surpass

(intr; foll by in or at) to be outstandingly good or proficienthe excels at tennis

Word Origin for excel

C15: from Latin excellere to rise up

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012