Link Centre Dictionary

surpass

sur·pass

UK/səˈpɑːs/ US/sɚˈpæs/ uncommon

verb

1.

distinguish oneself

  • “She excelled in math”
2.

be or do something to a greater degree

  • “her performance surpasses that of any other student I know”
  • “She outdoes all other athletes”
  • “This exceeds all my expectations”
  • “This car outperforms all others in its class”
3.

pass by

  • “A black limousine passed by when she looked out the window”
  • “He passed his professor in the hall”
  • “One line of soldiers surpassed the other”
4.

go beyond

  • “Their loyalty exceeds their national bonds”

Origin

From Middle French surpasser (“to pass beyond”). By surface analysis, sur- + pass. Displaced native Old English oferstīgan (literally “to climb over”).

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.