exhilaration
Americannoun
-
exhilarated condition or feeling.
- Synonyms:
- hilarity, jollity, joyousness, animation
-
the act of exhilarating.
Etymology
Origin of exhilaration
First recorded in 1615–25, exhilaration is from the Late Latin word exhilarātiōn- (stem of exhilarātiō ). See exhilarate, -ion
Explanation
Exhilaration is great joy, and excitement and liveliness! When you ride an ocean wave, hear a favorite song, or have a long and uncontrollable laugh with friends, there's a feeling of exhilaration, an overflow of happiness. Most people have moments of exhilaration (egg-zill-uh-RAY-shun), sometimes during life's big moments, like a graduation or wedding, and often while just walking down the street and feeling great about the day and being alive. And exhilaration is contagious: when you witness someone else's exhilaration, it usually makes you full of warmth and joyousness too. Some synonyms of exhilaration also sound close to it, like "exultation," "exaltation," and "elation." As they say, it's all good.
Vocabulary lists containing exhilaration
Lord of the Flies
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Words inspired by "Inside Out"
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The Pearl
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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.
Ms. Marvin’s combination of determination and weirdness lends the film some of the youthful exhilaration of “Rushmore.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026
I fell into the same rhythm: starting over, drenched in sweat, sheer exhilaration, “sign me up.”
From Salon • Jan. 1, 2026
But the exhilaration felt in such moments had been matched by the "anger and profound sadness" felt in others.
From Barron's • Dec. 31, 2025
Jerry Neuheisel was experiencing such a moment in UCLA’s upset of Penn State and his father Rick’s exhilaration over the joyful moment.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 11, 2025
Watching her, feeling the exhilaration swelling in my chest, I couldn’t say I was all that aware of the broken glass and flickering monitor displays, either.
From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken
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.
