exceed
Americanverb (used with object)
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exceeds,
present (3rd person singular)
-
exceeded,
past participle, past
-
exceeding
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
exceeds,
present (3rd person singular)
-
exceeded,
past participle, past
-
exceeding
present participle
-
to be greater, as in quantity or degree.
-
to surpass others; excel or be superior.
verb
-
to be superior to (a person or thing), esp in size or quality; excel
-
(tr) to go beyond the limit or bounds of
to exceed one's income
exceed a speed limit
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to be greater in degree or quantity than (a person or thing)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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exceedernoun
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superexceedverb (used without object)
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exceedableadjective
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unexceedableadjective
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unexceededadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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exceedsimple
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exceedssimple
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have exceededperfect
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has exceededperfect
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am exceedingprogressive
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are exceedingprogressive
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is exceedingprogressive
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have been exceedingperfect progressive
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has been exceedingperfect progressive
Past
-
exceededsimple
-
had exceededperfect
-
was exceedingprogressive
-
were exceedingprogressive
-
had been exceedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exceed
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English exceden, from Latin excēdere “to go out, go beyond”; equivalent to ex- 1 + cede
Explanation
To exceed is to go beyond expectations, or to go too far. If you exceed the speed limit, you might get a speeding ticket. Exceed and excess share the Latin root excedere meaning to "go beyond." An excess is too much of something, like the piles of candy after Halloween, and exceed means the action of going too far in a good or bad way. You exceed in school when you get straight A's. When Dr. Jekyll transforms into Mr. Hyde, he experiences "a grinding in the bones, deadly nausea, and a horror of the spirit that cannot be exceeded at the hour of birth or death." No thanks! It helps to remember that like speed, exceed ends with -eed.
Vocabulary lists containing exceed
Power Prefix: ex-
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The Bill of Rights
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Essential English Vocabulary, List 3
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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.
See Examples For:
He expects Dell’s AI and enterprise businesses to exceed expectations, and for the company to see between 50% and 60% growth in total revenue.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
Temperatures are expected to exceed 35C Wednesday in most of mainland Spain and could climb above 40C in parts of the northeast, posing health risks for those spending hours outdoors.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
The decision was a fortuitous one, for Grossman’s work as a correspondent in the Soviet Union’s epic struggle against Germany would far exceed anything he might have accomplished as a soldier.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
It’s not uncommon to find breakfast burritos that exceed $20, like the $24 wrap with beef machaca and shrimp offered on Daisy Margarita Bar’s weekend brunch menu.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
“No, sir. I regret to say. Just preliminary reports. Indications are that losses will exceed one third.”
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
If your income exceeds that threshold, the tax credit for your ACA premium can disappear completely — this is the much-dreaded “subsidy cliff.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
Higher borrowing costs add pressure to public finances as debt servicing already exceeds defense spending, they noted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
But they note in some districts the percentage of foreign owners already exceeds the 15 percent limit, particularly in "territories endowed with water and mineral resources, or logistical advantages," such as ports.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
Vinicius is two years younger and has a commercial value that exceeds Hazard's - and that is not to mention the seven-year cost of inflation.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
I have heard that the hunger for air exceeds as a compelling sensation the thirst for water.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
Making it the 40th day somewhere in the UK exceeded 30C this year.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
Count Binface -- the alter ego of comedian Jon Harvey -- exceeded expectations, however, taking 9,455 votes, 27 percent of the total.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
Two of them, CoreWeave and Super Micro Computer, exceeded expectations in their quarterly reports Tuesday afternoon, helping to boost stock futures overnight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Adjusted earnings per share of $1.22 also exceeded the $1.17 FactSet consensus view.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
I’d written more than sixty pieces for Outside over the previous fifteen years, and seldom had the travel budget for any of these assignments exceeded two or three thousand dollars.
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
By Sunday and into next week temperatures will rise even further with many parts of the UK exceeding their heatwave threshold temperature of 25 to 28C, depending on location.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
China’s trade surplus narrowed to $112.5 billion from $125.6 billion in June, exceeding economists’ forecast of $106.2 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Castillo is meanwhile serving a prison sentence exceeding 11 years, which Mexico continues to dispute.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
It now expects between $1.463 billion and $1.467 billion, exceeding the $1.437 billion consensus analyst view.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
In 1950, uranium production from mines in Colorado increased sharply, exceeding Canadian output for the first time.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
