exceed

exceed: exceed, surpass, transcend, excel, outdo, outstrip mean to go or to be beyond a stated or implied limit, measure, or degree.

Exceed may imply an overpassing of a limit set by one's right, power, authority, or jurisdiction

{
this task exceeds his ability
}

{
he has exceeded his authority in allowing such use of our land
}

or by prescription (as in time or space)

{
they were penalized if they exceeded the allotted time by even one day
}

The term may also imply superiority in size, amount, degree, or number according to a given standard or measure

{
my wrath shall far exceed the love I ever bore— Shak.
}

{
an Inferno which exceeds anything that Dante imagined— Henry Miller
}

Surpass often replaces exceed, especially when superiority to a standard or measure is implied

{
the reality surpassed our expectations
}

When the intent is to imply superiority in quality (as in virtue, in merit, or in skill) rather than in quantity or extent, surpass is usually preferred to exceed

{
it is safe to say that in this play Middleton is surpassed by one Elizabethan alone, and that is Shakespeare— T. S. Eliot
}

{
he surpasses all others in keenness of mind
}

Transcend carries so strong an implication of rising across or above a limit or measure that, although it is sometimes used in place of exceed

{
the powers of government are limited and ... its limits are not to be transcended— John Marshall
}

and often in place of surpass

{
this sorrow transcending all sorrows— Hudson
}

It is the precise term to use when a higher than human or earthly limit, standard, or measure is implied

{
a point of view transcending the purely human outlook on the universe— Binyon
}

{
in the rather sloppy Socialism which pervades this document there is nothing which seems to transcend the limits of unaided human intelligence— Inge
}

In intransitive use excel implies reaching a preeminence in accomplishment or achievement

{
he excelled in the painting of miniatures
}

but in transitive use it differs little from surpass

{
love divine, all love excelling— Wesley
}

{
he excelled his friends in archery
}

{
during their seminary years he had easily surpassed his friend in scholarship, but he always realized that Joseph excelled him in the fervor of his faith— Cather
}

Outdo is less formal than excel or surpass, but it is often preferred when there is the intent to connote the breaking of a previously established record

{
he hath in this action outdone his former deeds doubly— Shak.
}

{
a competition in deceit in which, I admit, he outdid them— Wister
}

Outstrip is often preferred to excel or surpass when one wishes to suggest a race, a competition, or a strenuous effort to get ahead

{
he would not allow anyone to outstrip him in zeal
}

{
instead of allowing his reader the easy victory, he takes pride in outstripping him completely— Edmund Wilson
}

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Synonyms:

Transcend, surpass, cap, go beyond, Go too far, overstep the proper limit / Excel, outdo, outstrip, outvie, surpass, be superior to, Be the greater, bear the greater proportion, predominate, preponderate

Look at other dictionaries:

exceed — ex‧ceed [ɪkˈsiːd] verb [transitive] 1. to be more than a particular number or amount: • Working hours must not exceed 42 hours a week. • individuals with assets exceeding £500,000 2. to go beyond an official or legal limit: • Pesticide levels… … Financial and business terms
Exceed — Ex*ceed , v. i. 1. To go too far; to pass the proper bounds or measure. In our reverence to whom, we can not possibly exceed. Jer. Taylor. [1913 Webster] Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed. Deut. xxv. 3. [1913 Webster] 2. To be more or … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
exceed — [ek sēd′, iksēd′] vt. [ME exceden < OFr exceder < L excedere < ex , out, beyond + cedere, to go: see CEDE] 1. to go or be beyond (a limit, limiting regulation, measure, etc.) [to exceed a speed limit] 2. to be more than or greater than;… … English World dictionary
Exceed — Ex*ceed , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Exceeded}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Exceeding}.] [L. excedere, excessum, to go away or beyond; ex out + cedere to go, to pass: cf. F. exc[ e]der. See {Cede}.] To go beyond; to proceed beyond the given or supposed limit or… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
exceed — late 14c., from O.Fr. exceder (14c.) exceed, surpass, go too far, from L. excedere depart, go beyond, be in excess, surpass, from ex out (see EX (Cf. ex )) + cedere go, yield (see CEDE (Cf. cede)). Related: Exceeded; exceeding … Etymology dictionary
exceed — index carouse, outbalance, outweigh, overestimate, overlap, overreach, overstep, predominate (outnumber) … Law dictionary
exceed — [v] be superior to; surpass beat, best, better, break record*, cap, distance, eclipse, excel, get upper hand*, go beyond, go by, have advantage, have a jump on*, have it all over*, out distance, outdo, outpace, outreach, outrun, outshine,… … New thesaurus
exceed — ► VERB 1) be greater in number or size than. 2) go beyond what is stipulated by (a set limit). 3) surpass. ORIGIN Latin excedere, from cedere go … English terms dictionary
exceed — verb ADVERB ▪ considerably, far, greatly, significantly, substantially, vastly ▪ clearly, comfortably (esp. BrE), easily … Collocations dictionary
exceed — verb Etymology: Middle English exceden, from Middle French exceder, from Latin excedere, from ex + cedere to go Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. to extend outside of < the river will exceed its banks > 2. to be greater than or superior to 3 … New Collegiate Dictionary

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