excessive

[ik-ses-iv]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR excessive ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

going beyond the usual, necessary, or proper limit or degree; characterized by excess: excessive charges; excessive criticism.

Origin of excessive

1350–1400; Middle English (see excess, -ive); replacing Middle English excessif < Middle French

Related formsex·ces·sive·ly, adverbex·ces·sive·ness, nounnon·ex·ces·sive, adjectivenon·ex·ces·sive·ly, adverbnon·ex·ces·sive·ness, nounqua·si-ex·ces·sive, adjectivequa·si-ex·ces·sive·ly, adverbun·ex·ces·sive, adjectiveun·ex·ces·sive·ly, adverb

Synonyms for excessive

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR excessive ON THESAURUS.COM

immoderate, extravagant, inordinate, exorbitant, unreasonable.

Antonyms for excessive

reasonable.

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

Related Words for excessively

very, unreasonably, extremely

Examples from the Web for excessively

Contemporary Examples of excessively

No excessively masculine hero of a traditional cowboy detective story, The Dude is a different kind of man.
Dudes and Maudes Abide at New York City Lebowski Fest
Rich Goldstein
August 25, 2014
Is this entire thing just one big scheme to cash in on excessively proud moms and dads?
Introducing the Internet’s New Bundle of Joy: The Baby Selfie
Charlotte Lytton
February 25, 2014
The book depicts Bezos and Amazon as hard-charging, insatiable, and excessively secretive.
Jeff Bezos’s Wife Rips New Book on Her Husband
William O’Connor
November 5, 2013
We do not want to excessively weight Greece, for example, which has debt over 90 per cent for 19 years in the 1946-2009 sample.
Rogoff and Reinhart Respond
Megan McArdle
April 17, 2013
Their squeaky clean image has been excessively buffered through the years, even after the band broke up.
98 Degrees Released a New Song About Their Penises
Kevin Fallon
March 28, 2013

Historical Examples of excessively

The day was excessively hot, and the horses are very thirsty.
Explorations in Australia
John Forrest
The day was excessively hot again, and walking was most fatiguing.
Explorations in Australia
John Forrest
Mrs. Delany "was all raptures," and thought it "excessively fine."
Handel
Edward J. Dent
All this was excessively irritating, and needed no exaggeration from abroad.
The Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 10, No. 58, August, 1862
Various
Either we damn them excessively or we praise them excessively.
Changing Winds
St. John G. Ervine

British Dictionary definitions for excessively

excessive

adjective

exceeding the normal or permitted extents or limits; immoderate; inordinate

Derived Formsexcessively, adverbexcessiveness, noun

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

Word Origin and History for excessively

excessive

adj.

late 14c., from Old French excessif "excessive, oppressive," from Latin excess-, past participle stem of excedere "to depart, go beyond" (see exceed). Related: Excessively; excessiveness.