outmatched

verb

past tense of outmatch
as in exceeded
to be greater, better, or stronger than believes Secretariat would outmatch any other horse in racing history

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of outmatched In 2025, Arlington Heights ran into Aledo, a squad that simply outmatched the Yellow Jackets in the third round. — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Nov. 2026 The frontcourt was outmatched by just about every other contending team the Trojans faced. — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026 An interceptor that loses its link above 100 mph—or, by some accounts, above 43 mph—is badly outmatched. — Steven John, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2026 It was conceded that the catalogue of brews outmatched the finite power of the liver. — Sheldon Pearce, New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2026 In the first two games, the Falcons were essentially outmatched. — David Troy Outkick, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2026 Overall, Nakase outmatched DeMarco throughout the regular-season sweep. — Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 28 Aug. 2026 Even Iran has successfully used new technologies to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz this year, despite being completely outmatched by American military power. — Doug Beck, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026 China’s consistently weak domestic demand has long been outmatched by the country’s vast manufacturing capacity, leading firms to expand aggressively in — and grow increasingly dependent on — overseas markets to drive growth. — Brendan Ruberry, semafor.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outmatched
  1. exceeded
  2. surpassed
  3. eclipsed
  4. topped
  5. outclassed
Verb
  • Turnout exceeded 82% in the historic 1983 general election that made Harold Washington mayor.
    — Ashley Hartman, Chicago Tribune, 13 Nov. 2026
  • The heat index inside the prison exceeded the conditions outside about 80% of the time, according to the order.
    — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 12 Nov. 2026
Definition of exceeded
Verb
  • Coastal flooding damaged 114 homes and other structures last month as tides surpassed 8 feet, officials said at the meeting.
    — Claire Wang, Oc Register, 7 Nov. 2026
  • But that didn’t lead to consistent scoring, as the team has surpassed 17 points in a game just once this season.
    — Joaquin Ruiz, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of surpassed
Verb
  • Doncic’s 53-point outburst eclipsed Wembanyama’s 52 points the star center scored Wednesday for the highest single-game scoring performance this season.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2026
  • The seven-year veteran has eclipsed 1,400 rushing yards and double-digit touchdowns in three of the past five seasons, including 2024 and 2025.
    — Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of eclipsed
Verb
  • Each cookie is aptly named with a phrase or word that’s related to baseball, like the sluggers sourdough, a version of a chocolate chip cookie that Amber makes with sourdough and brown butter and is topped with flaky sea salt.
    — Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Alex Rounaghi, Sue Kempf and Mark Orgill topped the nine-candidate field from the close of polls on Tuesday and, as of Friday’s update on ballot counting in the county remain in the lead.
    — Erika I. Ritchie, Oc Register, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of topped
Verb
  • Simply put, Miami’s pass defense and run defense were outclassed by New England’s passing offense and rushing offense in the second half.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 2 Nov. 2026
  • One of the most important economic engines for Illinois and the rest of the Midwest is getting badly outclassed in global markets.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of outclassed

Browse Nearby Words

outmatch
outmatched
outmatches
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Outmatched.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outmatched. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of boilerplate

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
speech-bubble-untangle
Simplify The Convoluted Expression Quiz A quiz that’s as “uncomplicated as a round de...
See All