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• superior
  superior

  adjective

  higher in station, rank, degree, importance, etc..
• Superior
  Superior

  noun

  Lake Superior, a lake in the north central United States and southern Canada: the northernmost of the Great Lakes; the largest body of fresh water in the world. 350 miles (564 kilometers) long; 31,820 square miles (82,415 square kilometers); greatest depth, 1,290 feet (393 meters); 602 feet (183 meters) above sea level.

superior

¹ American  

[suh-peer-ee-er, soo-] / səˈpɪər i ər, sʊ- /

adjective

1. higher in station, rank, degree, importance, etc..

   a superior officer.

2. above the average in excellence, merit, intelligence, etc..

   superior math students.

   Synonyms:

   matchless, first-rate, unrivaled, distinguished, excellent

3. of higher grade or quality.

   superior merchandise.

4. greater in quantity or amount.

   superior numbers.

5. showing a consciousness or feeling of being better than or above others.

   superior airs.

   Synonyms:

   snobbish, arrogant, haughty

6. not yielding or susceptible (usually followed byto ).

   to be superior to temptation.

7. higher in place or position.

   We moved our camp to superior ground.

8. Botany.

   1. situated above some other organ.

   2. (of a calyx) seeming to originate from the top of the ovary.

   3. (of an ovary) free from the calyx.

9. Anatomy. (of an organ or part)

   1. higher in place or position; situated above another.

   2. toward the head.

10. Printing. written or printed high on a line of text, as the “2” in a 2 b; superscript.

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noun

• superiors
  plural

1. one superior to another.

2. Also called superscript. Printing. a superior letter, number, or symbol.

3. Ecclesiastical. the head of a monastery, convent, or the like.

Superior ² American  

[suh-peer-ee-er, soo-] / səˈpɪər i ər, sʊ- /

noun

1. Lake Superior, a lake in the north central United States and southern Canada: the northernmost of the Great Lakes; the largest body of fresh water in the world. 350 miles (564 kilometers) long; 31,820 square miles (82,415 square kilometers); greatest depth, 1,290 feet (393 meters); 602 feet (183 meters) above sea level.

2. a port in northwestern Wisconsin, on Lake Superior.

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superior ¹ British  

/ suːˈpɪərɪə /

adjective

1. greater in quality, quantity, etc

2. of high or extraordinary worth, merit, etc

3. higher in rank or status

   a superior tribunal

4. displaying a conscious sense of being above or better than others; supercilious

5. not susceptible (to) or influenced (by)

6. placed higher up; situated further from the base

7. astronomy

   1. (of a planet) having an orbit further from the sun than the orbit of the earth

   2. (of a conjunction) occurring when the sun lies between the earth and an inferior planet

8. (of a plant ovary) situated above the calyx and other floral parts

9. anatomy (of one part in relation to another) situated above or higher

10. printing (of a character) written or printed above the line; superscript

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noun

1. a person or thing of greater rank or quality

2. printing a character set in a superior position

3. (often capital) the head of a community in a religious order

Superior ² British  

/ suːˈpɪərɪə, sjuː- /

noun

1. a lake in the N central US and S Canada: one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world and westernmost of the Great Lakes. Area: 82 362 sq km (31 800 sq miles)

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Usage

Superior should not be used with than: he is a better (not a superior ) poet than his brother; his poetry is superior to (not superior than ) his brother's

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• superioress
  noun
• superiority
  noun
• quasi-superior
  adjective
• unsuperior
  adjective
• superiorly
  adverb
• unsuperiorly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• superiors
  plural

Etymology

Origin of superior¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (adjective), from Latin, equivalent to super(us) “situated above” (adjective derivative of super; see super-) + -ior, comparative suffix; see -er ⁴

Origin of Superior²

First recorded in 1780–85; translation of French Lac Supérieur “Upper Lake” (i.e., the lake above Lake Huron), or “Higher Lake” (in elevation above sea level)

Explanation

The salesman boasted to his customer that the $1 million car was well worth the price because it was far superior, meaning of higher quality, to any car that had come before it. This car, the salesman bragged, could fly. Superior comes from the Latin word meaning above and it literally means something that is above others in quality or status. Sometimes being superior can be perceived as a negative, as in the woman who acts superior to all of her friends, having a high opinion of herself just because she has millions of dollars in the bank after winning the lottery.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

superior Superior superiors

Decorated pots were also produced using higher quality clay, suggesting that the migrant potters were allowed access to scarce, superior materials for their work.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026

Should a player who transfers and has superior talent immediately get to start over a player who has been in the program for three years busting his butt?

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026

If you agree that it is a superior long-term strategy, there’s no good reason to wait until Halloween to begin following it.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

Each company retains its development and commercial rights for their assets, which likely signals AstraZeneca believes its own approaches are superior to PD-1xVEGF, the analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

He hangs around the kitchen and chats for a few minutes—Lily wants to explain why green beads are superior to purple beads—then drifts toward the basement door.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller

In the June primary, Los Angeles County voters cast ballots in 11 competitive Superior Court judicial elections.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman agreed to dismiss the criminal case against David Hearn with prejudice on Thursday, prohibiting the federal government from reviving the felony charge against him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

Proceedings had earlier been suspended after doubts were raised over Ortiz's mental competence, but Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Maria Cavalluzzi on Tuesday reinstated criminal proceedings.

From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026

A document submitted to Los Angeles County Superior Court on Monday states that Williamson denies “each and every allegation” made against him by a Jane Doe in a second amended complaint filed in June.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026

This summer we’re in a rented cabin on the north shore of Lake Superior.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

Hochman said Flores simply could have taken notes on the inappropriate comments and turned them in to superiors or the independent inspector general, which strikes me as either sweetly naive or disingenuous.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

First-year mids, Crew said, are actually required to read two news articles daily, and to discuss them with their superiors.

From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026

"You could get a decent role, earn money and not do the usual duties," he recalled his superiors saying.

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

Stilwell, who refrains from sharing his first name, operates on Catalina Island, a dumping ground for officers who’ve either botched cases or run afoul of their superiors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

In part because of his undistinguished origins, Hamilton always seemed compelled to be proving himself; he needed to impress his superiors with his own superiority.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Related Words

• admirable
• exceptional
• first-rate
• good
• high-caliber
• preferable
• remarkable
• superhuman