excellent

English Online Dictionary. What means excellent‎? What does excellent mean?

English

Etymology

From Middle English excellent, from Old French excellent, from Latin excellēns (“elevated, exalted”), present participle of excellō (“elevate, exult”), equivalent to excel +‎ -ent.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈɛksələnt/, /ˈɛksɪlənt/
• (in rapid speech) IPA^(key): /ˈɛkslənt/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɛksələnt/

Adjective

excellent (comparative more excellent, superlative most excellent)

1. Having excelled, having surpassed.
2. Of higher or the highest quality; splendid.
3. Exceptionally good of its kind.

4. Superior in kind or degree, irrespective of moral quality.
   • 1754–1762, David Hume, The History of England

     Elizabeth, therefore, who was an excellent hypocrite

Synonyms

• See Thesaurus:excellent

Antonyms

• poor
• terrible

Derived terms

Related terms

• excel

Translations

Adverb

excellent (comparative more excellent, superlative most excellent)

1. (obsolete) Excellently.
   • , New York Review Books 2001, p.287:

     Lucian, in his tract de Mercede conductis, hath excellent well deciphered such men's proceedings in his picture of Opulentia […].

Further reading

• “excellent”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• excellent in Britannica Dictionary
• excellent in Macmillan Collocations Dictionary
• excellent in Ozdic collocation dictionary
• excellent in WordReference English Collocations

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch excellent, from Middle French excellent, from Old French excellent, from Latin excellēns.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌɛk.səˈlɛnt/
• Hyphenation: ex‧cel‧lent
• Rhymes: -ɛnt

Adjective

excellent (comparative excellenter, superlative excellentst)

1. (formal) excellent, splendid

   Synonyms: uitmuntend, uitstekend

Declension

Related terms

• excellentie

Descendants

• Negerhollands: excellent
• → Papiamentu: excelent (dated)

French

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin excellentem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛk.sɛ.lɑ̃/ ~ /ɛk.se.lɑ̃/

Adjective

excellent (feminine excellente, masculine plural excellents, feminine plural excellentes)

1. excellent; splendid

Usage notes

This adjective is generally placed before the noun it modifies.

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛk.sɛl/

Verb

excellent

1. third-person plural present indicative/subjunctive of exceller

Further reading

• “excellent”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Latin

Verb

excellent

1. third-person plural future active indicative of excellō

Middle French

Noun

excellent m (feminine singular excellente, masculine plural excellens, feminine plural excellentes)

1. excellent

Occitan

Etymology

From Latin excellēns.

Pronunciation

Adjective

excellent m (feminine singular excellenta, masculine plural excellents, feminine plural excellentas)

1. excellent

Related terms

• excelléncia
• excellir