superiority
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of superiority
First recorded in 1520–30, superiority is from the Medieval Latin word superiōritāt- (stem of superiōritās ). See superior, -ity
Explanation
Superiority is the quality of being better than or superior to someone else. Your superiority in the sack race won you a first-place ribbon. Superiority refers to the best. It’s better than, above, greater than everything else, whether there’s something to compare it to — the superiority of one ice cream flavor over another — or whether it just describes a general state of high quality — the superiority of the University library. Of course, sometimes superiority is all in your head; in that case, some people might say you have a superiority complex, which means that you think you’re better than everyone else!
Vocabulary lists containing superiority
Power Prefix: super-
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Trumps
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"Marita's Bargain," Vocabulary from the essay
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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.
Appeared in the May 5, 2026, print edition as 'America’s Air Superiority Is Losing Altitude'.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 4, 2026
"Superiority in the air is key to success on the ground," air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat was quoted as saying by Ukrainian media.
From Reuters • Aug. 21, 2023
"Superiority is not necessarily mean," Kuipers pointed out.
From Salon • Apr. 1, 2021
Soom’s tahini is milled from Ethiopian seeds into a fragrant, silky paste, which lends itself to a defiantly smooth gelato Brooks Headley spins at Superiority Burger.
From Slate • Jul. 3, 2018
I don't mind owning that there is a lot of the Air of Superiority in it, and there are other things.
From The New Gulliver and Other Stories by Pain, Barry
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.
