Excellent Meaning
/ˈɛk.sə lənt/Definition, CEFR level A1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjHaving excelled, having surpassed.
adjOf higher or the highest quality; splendid.
Sentence Examples
You did an excellent job.
Your examination results are excellent.
The excellent menu is complemented by a good wine list.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The students received ____ marks on all their final exams.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The restaurant is famous for its ____ food and its attentive, professional service.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English excellent, from Old French excellent, from Latin excellēns (“elevated, exalted”), present participle of excellō (“elevate, exult”), equivalent to excel + -ent.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"A great bargain also had been the excellent Axminster carpet which covered the floor; as, again, the arm-chair in which Bunting now sat forward, staring into the dull, small fire."
— 1913, Mrs. [Marie] Belloc Lowndes, chapter I, in The Lodger, London: Methuen, →OCLC; republished in Novels of Mystery: The Lodger; The Story of Ivy; What Really Happened, New York, N.Y.: Longmans, Green and Co., […], [1933], →OCLC, page 0016:
"Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus. That’s because the lenses that are excellent at magnifying tiny subjects produce a narrow depth of field. A photo processing technique called focus stacking has changed that."
— 2013 July-August, Catherine Clabby, “Focus on Everything”, in American Scientist:
"Elizabeth, therefore, who was an excellent hypocrite"
— 1754–1762, David Hume, “(please specify the page)”, in [The History of England ], volume (please specify |volume=1 to 6), London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, […]:
"Their sorrows are most excellent."
— 1616–1618, John Fletcher, Philip Massinger, Nathan Field, “The Queene of Corinth”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1647, →OCLC, Act II, scene iii:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The students received ____ marks on all their final exams.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The restaurant is famous for its ____ food and its attentive, professional service.