as in excess
being over what is needed
surplus stock gets shipped to the warehouse and is eventually sold at auction
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in overflow
the state or an instance of going beyond what is usual, proper, or needed
we have a surplus of plastic knives, but we're short on forks and spoons for the picnic
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of surplus
Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 11 Mar. 2026
But the update also decreed that new rooftop solar customers would no longer be credited at the retail rate of electricity when their systems generated surplus energy.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2026
Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 27 Mar. 2026
Having spent much of the phantom surplus on Medi-Cal expansion and other programs, the budget quickly developed chronic deficits.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for surplus
Adjective
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond, a Democrat, has called for building more than two million homes on surplus land that schools have.
—Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 11 Mar. 2026
But the update also decreed that new rooftop solar customers would no longer be credited at the retail rate of electricity when their systems generated surplus energy.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2026
Noun
Metro Denver continues to struggle with a huge surplus of office space, especially downtown, where the vacancy rate is approaching 40% and empty skyscrapers are selling for pennies on the dollar.
—Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 27 Mar. 2026
Having spent much of the phantom surplus on Medi-Cal expansion and other programs, the budget quickly developed chronic deficits.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for surplus
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surplus
Adjective
-
The state’s Surplus Land Act requires, in many situations, that local governments selling excess property prioritize affordable housing and give such developers the first pass at negotiating for the land.—
Victoria Le,
Oc Register,
26 Mar. 2026
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Now, his legendary rock 'n' roll excess takes center stage in the documentary Billy Idol Should Be Dead.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Dilemmas like Pedraza’s are increasingly common in San Joaquin County, which has long served as a sort of overflow zone for the Bay Area’s housing crisis.—
Connor Letourneau,
San Francisco Chronicle,
28 Mar. 2026
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Generations of medical students have voiced their desire for more nutrition education, especially for practical knowledge to address numerous questions from their patients and to untangle the overflow of information and misinformation from contemporary media.—
Christopher Duggan,
STAT,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Minnelli haggled with doctors for extra pills, was left home alone with her infant sister, and once used garden shears to slice open a screen window when Garland locked herself in a bathroom, threatening to overdose.—
Matt Weinstock,
New Yorker,
25 Mar. 2026
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For now, Hill isn’t making any specific recommendations for how to allocate the extra cash.—
Rebecca Noel,
Charlotte Observer,
25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Gardner was kept busy tossing out his hat, some spare boots, flashlight, and other gear to mark the places at which the meat was being jettisoned.—
Dave Duffey,
Outdoor Life,
26 Mar. 2026
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The country will have roughly 400 gigawatts of spare power capacity by 2030, equal to three times what the world will need to meet data center demands, according to Goldman Sachs.—
Nicholas Gordon,
Fortune,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Surplus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surplus. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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