as in surpassed
to be greater, better, or stronger than
the special effects in this new sci-fi extravaganza excel any that we've seen previously
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Recent Examples of excelled
But since emerging in the Resurrection Christian lineup as a sophomore, Stockton has excelled while consistently wrestling above his weight.
—
Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 22 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, Gu excelled as a student and as an athlete throughout her adolescence.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 21 Feb. 2026
The weekend pits them against a Brentford side who have excelled at winning tight games.
—Oliver Kay, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2026
Gracynn has excelled in multiple leadership positions.
—Andy Humbles, Nashville Tennessean, 20 Feb. 2026
Similar to her mother, Hwang has excelled in her field.
—Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 18 Feb. 2026
Like many young women of her generation, Lady Anne was educated at home by a governess and reportedly excelled at music and languages.
—Stephanie Bridger-Linning, Vanity Fair, 17 Feb. 2026
Cepuran’s father was among Lehman’s first speedskating coaches, and Lehman, who also excelled in hockey and lacrosse growing up, could remember plenty of times at the rink, in his younger years, watching Cepuran try to keep up with the older kids.
—Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
Our City Council members have excelled at conjuring up new and creative ways to make a dire parking situation in San Diego even worse — and more expensive.
—Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 22 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, Gu excelled as a student and as an athlete throughout her adolescence.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 21 Feb. 2026
The weekend pits them against a Brentford side who have excelled at winning tight games.
—Oliver Kay, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2026
Gracynn has excelled in multiple leadership positions.
—Andy Humbles, Nashville Tennessean, 20 Feb. 2026
Similar to her mother, Hwang has excelled in her field.
—Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 18 Feb. 2026
Like many young women of her generation, Lady Anne was educated at home by a governess and reportedly excelled at music and languages.
—Stephanie Bridger-Linning, Vanity Fair, 17 Feb. 2026
Cepuran’s father was among Lehman’s first speedskating coaches, and Lehman, who also excelled in hockey and lacrosse growing up, could remember plenty of times at the rink, in his younger years, watching Cepuran try to keep up with the older kids.
—Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
Our City Council members have excelled at conjuring up new and creative ways to make a dire parking situation in San Diego even worse — and more expensive.
—Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excelled
Verb
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Winning games is hard, though; Sunderland have won nine out of 26 in the league in a season that has surpassed all expectations.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
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Maher ended his career with the NFL record for the most 60-yard field goals, a mark that would be surpassed by current Cowboys All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey.—
Lawrence Dow,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
After tallying wastewater and stormwater system needs listed by communities and states for the next 20 years, the EPA concluded the total needed to upgrade wastewater systems exceeded $300 billion over the next 20 years.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA Today,
22 Feb. 2026
-
But the up and down, fluctuating tariffs around the world spooked American businesses, prompting a court challenge, contending that the president had exceeded his authority in imposing the tariffs.—
Nina Totenberg,
NPR,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Recently, though, her charisma, cutting humor and being a loving mother have somehow eclipsed those accusations, and not even an entire TLC docuseries about her and her church could dent put a dent in her popularity.—
Kate Aurthur,
Variety,
25 Feb. 2026
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Their fear for their own lives was eclipsed by an urgent sense of responsibility toward the civilians being starved and bombed to death.—
Yousra Elbagir,
Time,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Taking a backseat to the 2026 blizzard Though its societal impact may never be topped, the Blizzard of '78 must now take a back seat to the 2026 blizzard in terms of the snowiest storm in Rhode Island history.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
24 Feb. 2026
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Toppings will range from traditional to the playful mashup of the Carnitas Pizza, topped with carnitas, a rajas crema, cilantro, onions and chiles.—
Helen Freund,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Excelled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excelled. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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