excessive
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of excessive
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English ( see excess, -ive); replacing Middle English excessif, from Middle French
Explanation
Excessive means beyond what is typical or normal. When something is excessive, there's way too much. Excessive refers to something that is extra — usually in a negative way. A 90-second drum solo in a two-minute song is excessive. Getting down on your knees and kissing someone's feet to thank them for a favor is excessive, unless they gave you their firstborn. Often this means something that exceeds the bounds of good taste, or is extravagant and inappropriately expensive. You should dress up for dinner, but wearing a ball gown to a diner is excessive.
Vocabulary lists containing excessive
The Bill of Rights
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Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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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.
Banned items include weapons, fireworks, flares, gas canisters, laser pens, camping chairs, umbrellas, flagpoles, air horns, megaphones, nitrous oxide, and excessive food and cigarettes security would think was more than "personal use".
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
And excessive volatility can scare off some investors.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
Disinflation is scarce: Counterintuitively, big price gains in food and energy are not the real cause of excessive inflation, Faulkner-MacDonagh says.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
South Korean officials said over the weekend that they stood ready to intervene to curb excessive volatility and speculative trading.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 8, 2026
His critics thought this estimate excessive and absurd.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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.
