exceed
Americanverb (used with object)
-
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
-
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
-
exceedssimple
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have exceededperfect
-
has exceededperfect
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am exceedingprogressive
-
are exceedingprogressive
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is exceedingprogressive
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have been exceedingperfect progressive
-
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:
"Our work suggests that the trace amounts of sucralose-6-acetate in a single, daily sucralose-sweetened drink exceed that threshold. And that's not even accounting for the amount of sucralose-6-acetate produced as metabolites after people consume sucralose."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
The benefit is fairly modest, averaging about $9,000 per child annually, in a country where childcare costs can exceed $30,000 a year.
From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026
“You cannot have recursive self-improving AI that basically is able to improve itself and exceed human capability.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
A Shire horse that has entered the record books as the world's tallest living horse could exceed his height as he is still growing, his owner has said.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
The severity of shock is reflected in 17-hydroxycortico- steroid levels comparable to those in schizophrenic patients in incipient psychosis, which exceed levels in other stressful situations.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
In fact, its methanol abundance exceeds that seen in almost all known comets from our own solar system.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026
The company is also considering the future of its Emden, Zwickau, Hanover and Neckarsulm plants, where it has said production capacity exceeds demand.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
According to the American Bondholders Foundation, this outstanding debt now exceeds $1 trillion, thanks to accrued interest and penalties.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
“The Dodgers have the highest revenue in baseball, and it significantly exceeds the team’s obligations to its players,” the statement said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
“Then the queen and her son are alike in their passions,” I said, “for Gertrude’s grief exceeds all bounds. I fear her health is in danger.”
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
In mid-September, the 30-year mortgage rate exceeded 7%.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
If their CTmax is exceeded, insects succumb to desiccation, muscle spasms and eventual stupor.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026
The Energy Department’s chief spokesman said the agency was ensuring U.S. capabilities had parity or exceeded other nations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Seven-time major winner Alcaraz had exceeded expectations on his return after more than four months out with a wrist injury, including sweeping past 20th seed Tommy Paul to reach the last eight.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
When Pipkin had planted in himself, like some somber tree, the knowledge that Hazel would never return, his bewilderment exceeded his grief: and this bewilderment he saw on every side among his companions.
From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams
The Lagos-based refinery, which began operations in 2024, has a capacity of 700,000 barrels per day, exceeding domestic demand in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
On June 22, 2022, the organization stated that "the probability of a tsunami wave exceeding 1 meter in the Mediterranean in the next 30 years is close to 100%."
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
The Treasury Department said it would buy back $6 billion in U.S. government debt, exceeding the amount previously announced in its effort to contain bond yields.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
The Treasury Department said it would buy back $6 billion in U.S. government debt, exceeding the amount previously announced in an effort to contain bond yields.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
He felt shame before them and he told them he saw his own exceeding folly in allowing the loss of a mere girl to make him forget everything else.
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.
