as in extraordinary
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
1
as in exceeding
to be greater, better, or stronger than
she always tried to surpass her older brother at anything he did
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in transcending
to go beyond the limit of
the sales of the band's newest CD have surpassed the combined sales of its last two albums
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 surpassing
James Peckham, PC Magazine, 13 Apr. 2026
This charming town on Lake Michigan has emerged as a surprising luxury hotspot, with 53 percent of listings now surpassing $1 million.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 11 Apr. 2026
During the mission, the Artemis II crew set a record for farthest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth, surpassing the record of 248,655 miles previously set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970, according to NASA.
—Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 11 Apr. 2026
He's commuted for nearly four years, but recently the spikes of gas have increased, surpassing his monthly budget.
—Kara St. Cyr, CBS News, 9 Apr. 2026
Kenzel Lantano dished out 36 assists and tallied 12 digs (surpassing 500 career digs), an ace and a block as Lynn Classical (5-0) bested Malden 3-1 in the Greater Boston League.
—Tyler McManus, Boston Herald, 9 Apr. 2026
Since October, 23 people have died in ICE custody, already surpassing the total for the prior fiscal year and now on pace to be the deadliest period in two decades.
—Erwin Chemerinsky, Twin Cities, 8 Apr. 2026
Three months after the Prescott deal, Juan Soto agreed to the biggest-ever contract in MLB, signing a 15-year deal worth a staggering $765m with the New York Mets, surpassing Shohei Ohtani’s $700m deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers announced in late 2023.
—Dan Sheldon, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2026
Her season total for points was the fifth-best in program history, surpassing Sophie Cunningham’s 2018-19 mark.
—Aaron Segal, Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2026
Verb
Microsoft celebrated the app surpassing 10 million downloads in 2024.
—James Peckham, PC Magazine, 13 Apr. 2026
This charming town on Lake Michigan has emerged as a surprising luxury hotspot, with 53 percent of listings now surpassing $1 million.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 11 Apr. 2026
During the mission, the Artemis II crew set a record for farthest distance humans have ever traveled from Earth, surpassing the record of 248,655 miles previously set by the Apollo 13 crew in 1970, according to NASA.
—Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 11 Apr. 2026
He's commuted for nearly four years, but recently the spikes of gas have increased, surpassing his monthly budget.
—Kara St. Cyr, CBS News, 9 Apr. 2026
Kenzel Lantano dished out 36 assists and tallied 12 digs (surpassing 500 career digs), an ace and a block as Lynn Classical (5-0) bested Malden 3-1 in the Greater Boston League.
—Tyler McManus, Boston Herald, 9 Apr. 2026
Since October, 23 people have died in ICE custody, already surpassing the total for the prior fiscal year and now on pace to be the deadliest period in two decades.
—Erwin Chemerinsky, Twin Cities, 8 Apr. 2026
Three months after the Prescott deal, Juan Soto agreed to the biggest-ever contract in MLB, signing a 15-year deal worth a staggering $765m with the New York Mets, surpassing Shohei Ohtani’s $700m deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers announced in late 2023.
—Dan Sheldon, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2026
Her season total for points was the fifth-best in program history, surpassing Sophie Cunningham’s 2018-19 mark.
—Aaron Segal, Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surpassing
Adjective
-
That set the stage for an extraordinary showdown that posed serious risks for the global economy and raised the specter that the ceasefire could collapse and the war could resume.—
Samy Magdy,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Apr. 2026
-
The scale of commitment is extraordinary.—
Winston Ma,
semafor.com,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The pair was arrested and charged with burglary and grand theft exceeding $20,000.—
Jermont Terry,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Treatment often requires hospitalization; when kidney failure is severe, dialysis is needed, with bills often exceeding $10,000.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Although based on the Sanskrit Ramayana attributed to Valmiki, Tulsidas’s work is a theological reenvisioning in which Rama appears throughout as the supreme god rather than as a heroic human figure.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Demonstrators gather under a portrait of Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran on Thursday.—
Katherine Doyle,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
On their record-breaking flyby, the astronauts reached a maximum 252,756 miles from Earth before hanging a U-turn behind the moon, eclipsing Apollo 13‘s distance record.—
Marcia Dunn,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Apr. 2026
-
When our own planet was eclipsing the sun, at least from the Artemis capsule’s point of view, the astronauts saw the agave-green milky glow of the solar atmosphere and its dust, visible around the moon.—
Rebecca Boyle,
The Atlantic,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
This superlative coat can feature more than 155,000 hairs per square centimeter (about 1,000,000 hairs per square inch), roughly 10 times as many hairs as the coats of most cats.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Leo Carlsson, center, A- Carlsson had a superlative start to the season, looking every bit the equal of his most prominent peers like Connor Bedard and Macklin Celebrini in the first two months of 2025-26.—
Andrew Knoll,
Oc Register,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Haotong Li of China shot 69 and was four behind, still mystified by topping a fairway metal that raced into the pond in front of the 15th green.—
Doug Ferguson,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Gas prices have surged more than 30% since the United States and Israel launched their military campaign, with the national average now topping $4 per gallon, according to AAA.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
That's all well and good, and that's a huge part of the learning process.—
Bryant Reed,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Milton, a Whichita State signee, played a huge role in what was arguably North Crowley girls basketball’s best season.—
Charles Baggarly,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Shuttle services have been arranged to transport journalists between the media center and a hotel in the city’s main shopping mall.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
But the leak appeared to get worse when the service module fired its main engine for the translunar injection burn on Day 2 of the flight, according to Amit Kshatriya, NASA’s associate administrator.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Surpassing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surpassing. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
