exemplary
[ig-zem-pluh-ree, eg-zuh m-pler-ee]
- worthy of imitation; commendable: exemplary conduct.
- serving as a warning: an exemplary penalty.
- serving as an illustration or specimen; illustrative; typical: The sentences read are exemplary of the style of the essay as a whole.
- serving as a model or pattern: The authoritative and exemplary text of the work is in the Bodleian Library at Oxford University.
- of, relating to, or composed of exempla, or examples or models: the exemplary literature of the medieval period.
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Origin of exemplary
Synonyms
See more synonyms for exemplary on Thesaurus.com1. laudable, noteworthy, praiseworthy.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for exemplary
Contemporary Examples
They are model citizens, the kind of people whose lives might be used as exemplary stories by a politician in a stump speech.
It was descriptive, prescriptive, and exemplary in its clarity.
Deacon Jones, 74 David D. Jones was an exemplary defensive end in the NFL.
The Deaths You Missed This YearMalcolm Jones, Jimmy So, Michael Moynihan, Caitlin Dickson
December 30, 2013
And, indeed, the 777 has had an exemplary safety record—with nearly 1,500 777s delivered, not a single passenger has died in one.
Mitt Romney is that rare person who seems to have exemplary personal character.
Mitt Romney’s Missing Character Narrative Must Be Part of GOP Convention SpeechJohn Avlon
August 30, 2012
Historical Examples
Mrs. Rice is a lady of refinement, exemplary, and much beloved and respected.
Cleveland Past and PresentMaurice Joblin
And I am bound to say he obeyed that order with the most exemplary alacrity.
CyropaediaXenophon
And yet this man has for years been leading a most exemplary life?
Masterpieces of MysteryVarious
He sighed and clasped his hands on his stomach with exemplary resignation.
'Twixt Land & SeaJoseph Conrad
She had seven sons, whom she had educated with the most exemplary piety.
Fox's Book of MartyrsJohn Foxe
exemplary
- fit for imitation; modelan exemplary performance
- serving as a warning; admonitoryan exemplary jail sentence
- representative; typicalan action exemplary of his conduct
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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 exemplary
adj.
1580s, "fit to be an example," from Middle French exemplaire, from Latin exemplaris "that serves as an example," from exemplum "example" (see example). Earlier (early 15c.) as a noun meaning "a model of conduct."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper