outshine
Americanverb (used with object)
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to surpass in shining; shine more brightly than.
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to surpass in splendor, ability, achievement, excellence, etc..
a product that outshone all competitors; to outshine one's classmates.
verb (used without object)
verb
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(tr) to shine more brightly than
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(tr) to surpass in excellence, beauty, wit, etc
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rare (intr) to emit light
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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outshinesimple
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outshinessimple
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have outshinedperfect
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have outshoneperfect
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has outshinedperfect
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has outshoneperfect
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am outshiningprogressive
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are outshiningprogressive
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is outshiningprogressive
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have been outshiningperfect progressive
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has been outshiningperfect progressive
Past
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outshinedsimple
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outshonesimple
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had outshinedperfect
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had outshoneperfect
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was outshiningprogressive
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were outshiningprogressive
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had been outshiningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of outshine
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.
See Examples For:
Even typical supernovae can outshine entire galaxies for a time.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 11, 2026
It felt as if the smaller Anthropic was on the ascent, threatening to outshine OpenAI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 7, 2026
Steakhouse sides, for instance, routinely outshine the steak itself.
From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2026
"I'm not shying away from that. However, I would say that the love actually does outshine the hate."
From BBC ● Dec. 19, 2025
Ernie was looking rather grumpy; determined to outshine Harry for once, he had most rashly invented his own potion, which had curdled and formed a kind of purple dumpling at the bottom of his cauldron.
From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling
Touted as a return to form, this album certainly outshines “Undercover” and “Dirty Work.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
The Paris he gives us might as well be cradled in a snow globe, it’s so schematically perfect; similarly, Ms. Kelly’s smile, which outshines the City of Light.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 19, 2025
Unlike the Milky Way, J0107a is enormous, and actually outshines all other early-Universe monster galaxies: it produces stars at a rate 300 times that of our Milky Way!
From Space Scoop ● Jun. 5, 2025
In a special episode of Money Talks, Emily Peck chats with writer/director Chloe Domont, whose feminist thriller Fair Play explores what happens when an ambitious woman outshines her well-meaning but insecure partner.
From Slate ● Mar. 12, 2024
All the fairies gleamed brilliantly, outshining the flowers of the garden like the sun outshines the moon.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
The daily chart illustrates how GSK has outshined peers over the past year.
From Barron's ● Mar. 30, 2026
Across the league, a new wave of quarterbacks outshined the old guard and wound up piloting the best teams in the sport.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 5, 2026
The Disney star who consistently outshined and outacted her peers was happy, healthy and ready to sharpen any performing skills that may have dulled during years when work was sparse.
From Salon ● Dec. 3, 2024
But should Katzenberg be outshined, it could help reshuffle a Hollywood pecking order that has been in place since Bill Clinton was president.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 1, 2023
Sponsored by Kagen, the resolution recognized the accomplishments of the 13 women who outshined and outperformed their male counterparts—but were never allowed to fly into space.
From "Women in Space" by Karen Bush Gibson
But one skill of his outshone all the others: He could fire from anywhere.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
Kagiyama outshone him in the team short programme in Milan, just as he had in December's Grand Prix Final.
From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026
Japan's Yuma Kagiyama outshone Malinin in the team short program, just as he did in December's Grand Prix Final.
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
But gold has outshone them all; it is outperforming every major stock index from Shanghai to New York.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2025
An eager sun outshone the neon sign atop the Squibb factory even before the first bell beckoned students to their homerooms.
From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord
ARLINGTON, Texas — In a World Cup boasting a galaxy of stars, a lunch-bucket team of blue-collar everymen may wind up outshining them all.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
Americans are rediscovering hybrid vehicles, which have turned into a bright spot for the U.S. car market — far outshining electric-only vehicles.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 5, 2026
Consumer staples stocks have been enjoying their time in the sun this month, outshining tech for once as AI fears renewed investors’ search for safety.
From Barron's ● Feb. 10, 2026
He’s outshining them on the sport’s brightest stage.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 6, 2026
Prosperity and peace came to the city, and slowly it became one of the most magnificent cities of the land, perhaps even outshining the emperor's Capital City.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
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.
