exuberance
Americannoun
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Also exuberancy. the state of being exuberant.
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an instance of this.
His pranks are youthful exuberances.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of exuberance
From the Latin word exūberantia, dating back to 1630–40. See exuberant, -ance
Explanation
Use exuberance to describe joyful enthusiasm and liveliness. You appreciate the natural exuberance of small children, but you prefer to enjoy it from a distance. The noun exuberance comes from the adjective exuberant, which itself came from a Latin word that originally described an overflowing supply of milk from the udder of a cow or goat! The word still means "overflowing," not with milk but with joy and enthusiasm. After your winning home run, the fans ran onto the field and, in their exuberance, carried you off on their shoulders . . . before you touched home plate.
Vocabulary lists containing exuberance
An Inspirational Back-to-School Word List
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Words inspired by "Inside Out"
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The Things They Carried
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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.
To some, it was an example of terrible corporate governance and a sign of irrational market exuberance.
From Barron's • Jun. 12, 2026
Despite the S&P 500 enjoying one of its sharpest rallies on record since the end of March, not all the telltale signs of irrational exuberance are visible at present, Goldman Sachs argues.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
U.S. technology stocks look set to follow their Asian peers higher, as exuberance around artificial-intelligence continues to drive markets higher.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 1, 2026
“Larry had a youthful, maybe childish exuberance in the way he voiced the character, and I wanted the character to connect with kids,” adds Duffield.
From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2026
While I am fascinated by the linguistic exuberance of the vox populi, I’d be the first to argue that having prescriptive rules is desirable, indeed indispensable, in many arenas of writing.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
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.
