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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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.

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DO YOU KNOW THIS VOCABULARY FROM "THE HANDMAID'S TALE"?

"The Handmaid's Tale" was required reading for many of us in school. Everyone else has probably watched the very popular and addictive TV show. Do you remember this vocabulary from the book, and do you know what these terms mean?

Question 1 of 10

decorum

the act of or need for making up one's mind.

dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.

a company of singers, especially an organized group employed in church service.

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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

SYNONYMS FOR excess

3 surplus.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR excess ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR excess

3 lack, deficiency.

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WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH excess

access assess excess

Words nearby excess

exceptional, exceptionalism, exceptive, excerpt, excerpta, excess, excess baggage, excess demand, excess insurance, excess luggage, excess sound pressure

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for excess

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
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
And some specialize in treating women, who have different risk factors for excess drinking.
Elizabeth Peña and the Truth About Alcoholic Women|Gabrielle Glaser|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“Most women are not drinking to excess because they feel ‘powerful’ in the first place,” she says.
Elizabeth Peña and the Truth About Alcoholic Women|Gabrielle Glaser|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Great numbers of people are passing to and fro, an excess of the feminine element being generally observable.
The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 20, No. 121, November, 1867|Various
If now the excess is on the side of the Franco-Russian alliance, the danger is still the same.
The Kingdom of God is Within You / Christianity and Patriotism / Miscellanies|Lev N. Tolstoy
"I shall have another pipe," he proclaimed, with an agreeable note of excess.
Marriage|H. G. Wells
The sudden transition from sorrow and despair to this excess of joy excited him infinitely.
Stoneheart|Gustave Aimard
The annual excess of deaths over births amounted to about two and one half per cent.
The Journal of Negro History, Volume 7, 1922|Various

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

Medical definitions for excess

excess

[ ĭk-sĕs′, ĕk′sĕs′ ]

n.

An amount or quantity beyond what is normal or sufficient; a surplus.

Idioms and Phrases with excess

excess

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

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excess