exultant
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of exultant
1645–55; < Latin ex ( s ) ultant- (stem of ex ( s ) ultāns ), present participle of exultāre to exult; see -ant
Explanation
Use the adjective exultant to describe the triumphant feeling you get when you succeed at something. The kids who win the Little League championship game will be exultant. The kid who's elected sixth grade president will feel exultant, and so will a singer who's just given the performance of her lifetime. Exultant describes an excitement that's a combination of pride, happiness, and triumph. The word exultant comes from the Latin exsilire, "to leap up," from the prefix ex-, "up or out," plus salire, "to leap." In other words, when you're exultant, you're jumping for joy.
Vocabulary lists containing exultant
Words to Capture Your Joy
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The Alchemist
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Mythology
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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.
“Yes! First sighting of Hot Podium Guy,” an exultant fan wrote on X.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
I interviewed both Europeans on that green and it was clear Fitzpatrick was desperate to celebrate with exultant visiting fans.
From BBC ● Dec. 23, 2025
For “The Cortège” is also exultant — a procession, yes, but a walk into an imagined world.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2025
The air of triumph as the curtain came down on Tuesday night owed as much to the piece as to the director Lileana Blain-Cruz’s vibrant and infectiously exultant production.
From New York Times ● Apr. 24, 2024
It might have been nothing more than a coincidence, but nevertheless, I felt an exultant smile overflow my face.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
