surplus

American  

[sur-pluhs, -pluhs] / ˈsɜr plʌs, -pləs /

noun

surpluses plural

1. something that remains above what is used or needed.

   Synonyms:

   superabundance

2. an amount, quantity, etc., greater than needed.

3. agricultural produce or a quantity of food grown by a nation or area in excess of its needs, especially such a quantity of food purchased and stored by a governmental program of guaranteeing farmers a specific price for certain crops.

4. Accounting.

   1. the excess of assets over liabilities accumulated throughout the existence of a business, excepting assets against which stock certificates have been issued; excess of net worth over capital-stock value.

   2. an amount of assets in excess of what is requisite to meet liabilities.

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adjective

1. being a surplus; being in excess of what is required.

   surplus wheat.

verb (used with object)

surplussed, surplused, surplussing, surplusing

1. to treat as surplus; sell off; retire.

   The government surplussed some of its desert lands.

surplus British  

/ ˈsɜːpləs /

noun

1. a quantity or amount in excess of what is required

2. accounting

   1. an excess of total assets over total liabilities

   2. an excess of actual net assets over the nominal value of capital stock

   3. an excess of revenues over expenditures during a certain period of time

3. economics

   1. an excess of government revenues over expenditures during a certain financial year

   2. an excess of receipts over payments on the balance of payments

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adjective

1. being in excess; extra

surplus Cultural  

1. An unsold quantity of a good resulting from a lack of equilibrium in a market. For example, if a price is artificially high, sellers will bring more goods to the market than buyers will be willing to buy. (Compare shortage.)

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Synonym Usage

See remainder.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• surpluses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of surplus

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Old French surplus, s(o)urplus, from Medieval Latin superplūs, equivalent to super- preposition and prefix + plūs neuter noun; see origin at super-, plus

Explanation

A surplus is something extra or left over. If your tree produces more apples than you can eat, you can make applesauce with the surplus of apples. The army surplus store sells old or out-of-date clothing and equipment that the military doesn't need. If you earn more money than you spend, then you have a surplus of cash. The word surplus has familiar parts: sur- is a shortened form of super, meaning "extra" or "additional," and plus just means "more."

Example Sentences

With a huge surplus of commercial space sitting fallow in the area, the flexibility and creativity of club music might be a natural fit to repopulate the area with foot traffic and revelers.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 8, 2026

May’s surfeit was wider than the C$2.68 billion expected by economists, and it follows April’s upwardly revised C$3.41 billion surplus.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 7, 2026

Unlike shareholder-owned firms, he said, any surplus is reinvested back into infrastructure and customer support.

From BBC • Jul. 6, 2026

To handle the extra volume, engineers send surplus water down 5 Shaft into the deep pool below, much like an overflow spillway helps relieve pressure at a full reservoir.

From Science Daily • Jul. 6, 2026

Lawrence’s careful groundwork with Groves bore fruit, for the general gave freely of the army’s surplus bounty, including the radar oscillators for Alvarez and a supply of capacitors for McMillan’s synchrotron, worth $203,000.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Related Words

• excess
• leftover
• unused