- present participle of surpass.
surpassing
Americanadjective
adverb
adjective
adverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of surpassing
Explanation
Something that's surpassing is exceptional or outstanding — much better or more than usual. A scene of surpassing hilarity in a movie might make you laugh until tears run down your face. The adjective surpassing is a bit old fashioned, and you're most likely to read it in a novel or poem. Its most common use is in the phrase "surpassing beauty," or exceptional beauty. A poet might reflect on the surpassing beauty of the sunset over the ocean, for example. To surpass is to "go beyond," from the prefix sur-, "beyond," and the Old French verb passer, "to go by."
Vocabulary lists containing surpassing
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.
For a brief period, the energy being released reached roughly 400 billion times the output of Earth's Sun, surpassing even the most powerful supernovae known to astronomers.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
Its order book is filled through 2030, with contracts surpassing $25 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
The San Jose, Calif.–based company said it sees revenue reaching between $72.2 billion and $73.4 billion in 2027, surpassing a Wall Street expectation of $69.1 billion.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
The move represents a new record fee for a British goalkeeper, surpassing the previous benchmark of £30m which Everton paid Sunderland for Jordan Pickford in 2017.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
It was rumored, however, that Bellerophon had a mightier father, Poseidon himself, the Ruler of the Sea, and the youth’s surpassing gifts of spirit and body made this account of his birth seem likely.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
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.
