Synonyms of excelling

excelling

verb

present participle of excel

as in exceeding

to be greater, better, or stronger than

the special effects in this new sci-fi extravaganza excel any that we've seen previously

Synonyms & Similar Words

• exceeding
• surpassing
• eclipsing
• topping
• outshining
• bettering
• transcending
• outdoing
• beating
• outstripping
• outclassing
• mastering
• outdistancing
• towering (over)
• overcoming
• outmatching
• overtopping
• overshadowing
• outgunning
• going one better
• defeating
• outpacing
• outperforming
• outrunning
• conquering
• surmounting
• outweighing
• running circles around
• outracing
• besting
• overpassing
• subduing
• prevailing (over)
• outcompeting
• overmatching
• crushing
• winning (against)
• licking
• shaming
• trumping
• trouncing
• one-upping
• routing
• trimming
• clobbering
• triumphing (over)
• whipping
• thrashing
• worsting
• walloping
• overbearing
• drubbing
• outbalancing
• skunking

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• losing (to)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of excelling

But the trifecta of excelling in distance running, swimming and the classroom is trumped by another athletic endeavor that took Thompson across the Atlantic Ocean two weeks ago. — Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026

Jack Wolf Westwood Lincoln Riley talks a big game about excelling in the Big Ten, but in losing badly to Oregon and its backup quarterback, USC probably couldn’t win the Pac-12 this year. — Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2026

Golden State was the best defensive team in the WNBA during the regular season by a convincing margin, particularly excelling at protecting the paint. — Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026

The holistic approach was designed to highlight cities that perform consistently well across all categories, rather than excelling in only one or two areas. — Lauren Dana Ellman, Travel + Leisure, 1 Sep. 2026

Highlights of Daniels excelling for the Tigers in big games might be considered within the ambit of newsworthiness and defeat a right-of-publicity claim. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Aug. 2026

Several players impressed, with fifth-round pick Jacob Monk excelling at left guard, working with the first-team offense and showing versatility. — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026

Power of women CEOs Stock performance aside, women chief executives are already excelling in their management roles in a trend Lizarraga first noticed about 20 years ago. — Michelle Fox, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026

Willis grew up as a dancer, excelling in ballet, contemporary, jazz and hip-hop, and dancing competitively at a private studio and throughout high school. — Gustavo Turner, HollywoodReporter, 24 July 2026