as in surpassed
to be greater, better, or stronger than
a tennis player who outclassed the competition, breezing through the tournament without losing a set
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Recent Examples of outclassed
Even with their entire contingent of guards healthy and Bediako getting into the swing, Oats’ team was badly outclassed.
—
Jim Root, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Alabama was outclassed one week after an impressive road win over Oklahoma, managing just 151 yards before the meaningless final minutes of this blowout.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 2 Jan. 2026
Alabama was outclassed one week after an impressive road win over Oklahoma, managing just 151 yards before the meaningless final minutes of the Tide’s biggest blowout loss since September 1998.
—Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 2 Jan. 2026
But defensively, Cincinnati faces a tough challenge containing Buffalo’s balanced offense, which thrives on both the run and play-action, and will need to force turnovers or risk being outclassed.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Dec. 2025
And yet, the litany of looks may have just been outclassed with an ultra-luxe Louis Vuitton link-up designed by the fashion house’s men’s creative director, Pharrell Williams.
—Riley Jones, Footwear News, 21 Nov. 2025
Still, they were decidedly outclassed by the Irish, who outgained the Panthers 387-219 and bullied Pitt in a way it hasn't been bullied this year.
—CBS News, 15 Nov. 2025
Against Carroll, the Eagles made some possessions tough on the Dragons, but were outclassed as the game progressed.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Nov. 2025
The Colorado Avalanche, who outclassed the B’s in Denver last week, are in town on Saturday.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 24 Oct. 2025
Jim Root, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
Alabama was outclassed one week after an impressive road win over Oklahoma, managing just 151 yards before the meaningless final minutes of this blowout.
—Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 2 Jan. 2026
Alabama was outclassed one week after an impressive road win over Oklahoma, managing just 151 yards before the meaningless final minutes of the Tide’s biggest blowout loss since September 1998.
—Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 2 Jan. 2026
But defensively, Cincinnati faces a tough challenge containing Buffalo’s balanced offense, which thrives on both the run and play-action, and will need to force turnovers or risk being outclassed.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Dec. 2025
And yet, the litany of looks may have just been outclassed with an ultra-luxe Louis Vuitton link-up designed by the fashion house’s men’s creative director, Pharrell Williams.
—Riley Jones, Footwear News, 21 Nov. 2025
Still, they were decidedly outclassed by the Irish, who outgained the Panthers 387-219 and bullied Pitt in a way it hasn't been bullied this year.
—CBS News, 15 Nov. 2025
Against Carroll, the Eagles made some possessions tough on the Dragons, but were outclassed as the game progressed.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Nov. 2025
The Colorado Avalanche, who outclassed the B’s in Denver last week, are in town on Saturday.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 24 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outclassed
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
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While the scale of violence exceeded expectations, the belief that international support was imminent undeniably emboldened many protesters.—
Pegah Banihashemi,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
-
For the first time, in 2025, the demand for non-American, non-Western, non-English-language content exceeded 50 percent of the global revenue pie.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The race ran so long Fox had to bump it to the lower-tier FS2 channel; the event eclipsed the three-hour window to run 50 miles.—
Doug Turnbull,
AJC.com,
15 Feb. 2026
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China eclipsed Japan as the world’s largest exporter of vehicles in 2023.—
Chris Isidore,
CNN Money,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The album topped the Billboard 200 chart for four weeks and spawned five top 10 hits on the Hot Latin Songs chart.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
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Boys basketball In nonleague play, Donavan Wright put in 20 points as Boston Latin topped Somerville 53-41.—
Kristina Banahan,
Boston Herald,
18 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Outclassed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outclassed. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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