excess

[ noun ik-ses, ek-ses; adjective, verb ek-ses, ik-ses ]

/ noun ɪkˈsɛs, ˈɛk sɛs; adjective, verb ˈɛk sɛs, ɪkˈsɛs /

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See synonyms for: excess / excessed / excesses / excessing on Thesaurus.com

noun

the fact of exceeding something else in amount or degree: His strength is in excess of yours.

the amount or degree by which one thing exceeds another: The bill showed an excess of several hundred dollars over the estimate.

an extreme or excessive amount or degree; superabundance: to have an excess of energy.

a going beyond what is regarded as customary or proper: to talk to excess.

immoderate indulgence; intemperance in eating, drinking, etc.

adjective

more than or above what is necessary, usual, or specified; extra: a charge for excess baggage; excess profits.

verb (used with object)

to dismiss, demote, transfer, or furlough (an employee), especially as part of a mass layoff.

OTHER WORDS FOR excess

3 surplus.

See synonyms for excess on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR excess

3 lack, deficiency.

See antonyms for excess on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of excess

1350–1400; Middle English (noun and adj.) <Latin excessus departure, digression, equivalent to exced-, variant stem of excēdere to exceed + -tus suffix of v. action

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH excess

access, assess, excess

Words nearby excess

exceptionality, exceptionally, exceptive, excerpt, excerpta, excess, excess baggage, excess demand, excess insurance, excessive, excessively

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use excess in a sentence

Let the excess liquid evaporate away by bringing the substance to a boil or a simmer until the desired consistency is reached.
Sauce, gravy or stew too thin? We’ve got 3 ways to fix that.|Aaron Hutcherson|February 12, 2021|Washington Post
Wyden seems to have been persuaded that the best way to contain the possible excesses of speech on the internet was the influence of market forces.
Twenty-Six Words Created the Internet. What Will It Take to Save It?|Stephen Engelberg|February 9, 2021|ProPublica
While these wake-up calls to our own waste are certainly effective, many of the artists seem more interested in using excess as a way of expressing reverence for nature.
Baltimore exhibition of outsider art celebrates nature’s ‘excess’ with a wake-up call about pollution|Kelsey Ables|February 8, 2021|Washington Post
When town officials and lawmakers try to walk back the excess, the unions hold their ground.
How the Police Bank Millions Through Their Union Contracts|by Andrew Ford, Asbury Park Press, and Agnes Chang, Jeff Kao and Agnel Philip, ProPublica|February 8, 2021|ProPublica

It’s a Super Bowl being conducted without its usual excesses.
Super spreader Sunday? Experts worry Super Bowl could trigger coronavirus explosion|Brittany Shammas, Fenit Nirappil, Mark Maske|February 5, 2021|Washington Post
Shake off any excess flour and gently place in the heated oil.
Make Carla Hall’s Crispy Shallot Green Bean Casserole|Carla Hall|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fold over the edges and crimp, then trim any remaining excess.
Make ‘The Chew’s’ Carla Hall’s Pumpkin Pecan Pie|Carla Hall|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Following the pre-recession excess of T-Pain and Akon, hip-hop was in search of greater authenticity.
Future Makes Us Rethink Everything We Thought We Knew About Rap Artists|Luke Hopping|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The Senate Intelligence Committee report says they secured a contract with the CIA in 2006 valued “in excess of $180 million.”
The Luxury Homes That Torture and Your Tax Dollars Built|Michael Daly|December 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By the way, killjoys, American charitable giving goes up by 42 percent during this season of crass materialistic greed and excess.
Keep Christmas Commercialized!|P. J. O’Rourke|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Victor was proud of his achievement, and went about recommending it and urging every one to partake of it to excess.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
The authorization borne by him was very extraordinary and had a great excess of the ordinary warrants.
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XX, 1621-1624|Various
(d) Excess balances may, at the convenience of each federal reserve bank, remain deposited with the gold settlement fund.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
To talk of an excess of labor, or an inability to employ it, in such a country as Ireland, is to insult the general understanding.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
All applications, including therein any on which action may have been deferred because in excess of the aforesaid 10 per cent.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips

British Dictionary definitions for excess

excess

noun (ɪkˈsɛs, ˈɛksɛs)

the state or act of going beyond normal, sufficient, or permitted limits

an immoderate or abnormal amount, number, extent, or degree too much or too manyan excess of tolerance

the amount, number, extent, or degree by which one thing exceeds another

chem a quantity of a reagent that is greater than the quantity required to complete a reactionadd an excess of acid

overindulgence or intemperance

insurance, mainly British a specified contribution towards the cost of a claim, stipulated on certain insurance policies as being payable by the policyholder

in excess of of more than; over

to excess to an inordinate extent; immoderatelyhe drinks to excess

adjective (ˈɛksɛs, ɪkˈsɛs) (usually prenominal)

more than normal, necessary, or permitted; surplusexcess weight

payable as a result of previous underpaymentexcess postage; an excess fare for a railway journey

Word Origin for excess

C14: from Latin excessus, from excēdere to go beyond; see exceed

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with excess

excess

see carry too far (to excess); in excess of.

excess

OTHER WORDS FOR excess

OPPOSITES FOR excess

Origin of excess

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH excess

Words nearby excess

Words related to excess

How to use excess in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for excess

Word Origin for excess

Other Idioms and Phrases with excess