excel
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
verb
-
to be superior to (another or others); surpass
-
(intr; foll by in or at) to be outstandingly good or proficient
he excels at tennis
Synonym Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
excelsimple
-
excelssimple
-
have excelledperfect
-
has excelledperfect
-
am excellingprogressive
-
are excellingprogressive
-
is excellingprogressive
-
have been excellingperfect progressive
-
has been excellingperfect progressive
Past
-
excelledsimple
-
had excelledperfect
-
was excellingprogressive
-
were excellingprogressive
-
had been excellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of excel
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Middle French exceller, from Latin excellere, equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + -cellere “to rise high, tower” (akin to celsus “high”)
Explanation
If you excel at math, you are doing it better than anyone else. You might even be moving so much faster than the rest of your class, you're put into a special, accelerated math program. Excel derives from the Latin excellere, which is all about going beyond the high. Someone who excels at the violin might practice five hours a day because they are striving for excellence, meaning outstanding-ness. You could describe their performance as excellent, or fantastic. That doesn't mean you yourself want to practice five hours a day. Excel means to stand out, and some of us are pretty happy standing right where we are.
Vocabulary lists containing excel
Power Prefix: ex-
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
List 4
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The Civil Rights Movement"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Today’s AI models can excel at single tasks, such as translation or image generation, but they cannot reason like a human.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 22, 2026
Antiqua et Nova acknowledges that AI systems excel at logical and mathematical thinking.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 15, 2026
The discussions range from people frustrated with controlling parents, to those exhausted from the pressure to excel academically or heed advice in the name of "filial piety".
From BBC • Jun. 13, 2026
Cerebras’ unusually large artificial-intelligence chips excel at running models at speed, while also sidestepping some of the networking and packaging required for connecting thousands of high-end processors from Nvidia or other chip makers.
From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026
Our professors knew us, had high expectations for us, and wanted us to excel because they knew what lay ahead of us professionally.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
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.
