Nominal Forms
Infinitive: to excel
Participle: exceled; excelled
Gerund: exceling; excelling
Cognates
-
Indicative
Present
| I | excel |
| you | excel |
| he;she;it | excels |
| we | excel |
| you | excel |
| they | excel |
Perfect
| I | have exceled; excelled |
| you | have exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | has exceled; excelled |
| we | have exceled; excelled |
| you | have exceled; excelled |
| they | have exceled; excelled |
Past
| I | exceled; excelled |
| you | exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | exceled; excelled |
| we | exceled; excelled |
| you | exceled; excelled |
| they | exceled; excelled |
Pluperfect
| I | had exceled; excelled |
| you | had exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | had exceled; excelled |
| we | had exceled; excelled |
| you | had exceled; excelled |
| they | had exceled; excelled |
Future
| I | will excel |
| you | will excel |
| he;she;it | will excel |
| we | will excel |
| you | will excel |
| they | will excel |
Future Perfect
| I | will have exceled; excelled |
| you | will have exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | will have exceled; excelled |
| we | will have exceled; excelled |
| you | will have exceled; excelled |
| they | will have exceled; excelled |
Subjunctive
Present
| I | excel |
| you | excel |
| he;she;it | excel |
| we | excel |
| you | excel |
| they | excel |
Perfect
| I | have exceled; excelled |
| you | have exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | have exceled; excelled |
| we | have exceled; excelled |
| you | have exceled; excelled |
| they | have exceled; excelled |
Imperfect
| I | exceled; excelled |
| you | exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | exceled; excelled |
| we | exceled; excelled |
| you | exceled; excelled |
| they | exceled; excelled |
Pluperfect
| I | had exceled; excelled |
| you | had exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | had exceled; excelled |
| we | had exceled; excelled |
| you | had exceled; excelled |
| they | had exceled; excelled |
Conditional
Present
| I | would excel |
| you | would excel |
| he;she;it | would excel |
| we | would excel |
| you | would excel |
| they | would excel |
Perfect
| I | would have exceled; excelled |
| you | would have exceled; excelled |
| he;she;it | would have exceled; excelled |
| we | would have exceled; excelled |
| you | would have exceled; excelled |
| they | would have exceled; excelled |
Imperative
| you | excel |
| we | Let's excel |
| you | excel |
Verbs conjugated like 'excel'
annul,
bevel,
cancel,
carol,
cavil,
channel,
chisel,
compel,
control,
counsel,
court-martial,
cudgel,
decontrol,
dial,
dispel,
dowel,
drivel,
duel,
empanel,
enamel, etc. (List truncated at 20 verbs)
Verbs similar to 'excel'
expel,
eel,
emcee,
excede,
exceed,
except,
excern,
excerp,
excess,
excur,
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
- to pass beyond the limits of something
- exceed, forpass, go beyond, outcompass, outstep, outstrip, overgo, overpass, overreach, overstep, overstride, surpass, transcend, transgress, trespass
- to surpass someone or something
- exceed
- to go beyond
- surpass, transcend
- to be better than
- best, better, dwarf, eclipse, exceed, outclass, outdo, outmatch, outperform, outrival, outrun, outshadow, outshine, outstrip, outvie, overshadow, pass, put to shame, surpass, top, transcend, trump, upstage
- surpass
- beat, exceed, cap, eclipse, outdo, outstrip
Additional Information
The forms with ortographic changes are used in British English, in American English the doubling of the consonant is usually omitted.
Phrasal Verbs
Etymology
1. c.1408, from L.
excellere "to rise, surpass, be eminent," from
ex- "out from" +
-cellere "rise high, tower," related to
celsus "high, lofty, great," from PIE base
*kel-/*kol- "to rise, be elevated" (see hill).
2. From Middle English excellen, from Old French exceller, from Latin excellere, excelsum; ex (“out”) + *cellō, an unattested verb root found in culmen (“height, top”); Compare French exceller. See also culminate, column. See: Latin '
excello', French '
exceller'.
Verbs referencing "excel"
Ido ecelar.
Sample Sentences
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I excelled everyone else with my exam results.
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Compositions which follow the style of Nissi Belzer's creations in structure but which excel them in length. [1929, Abraham Zevi Idelsohn, Jewish Music: Its Historical Development, page 434:]
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La Rochefoucauld, the French philosopher, said: "If you want enemies, excel your friends; but if you want friends, let your friends excel you." Why is that true? Because when our friends excel us, that gives them a feeling of importance; but when we excel them, that gives them a feeling of inferiority and arouses envy and jealousy. [1936, Dale Carnegie, “Part 3, Chapter 6: THE SAFETY VALVE IN HANDLING COMPLAINTS”, in How to Win Friends and Influence People:]
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Everyone agreed Magnus really excelled himself this tournament.
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But it is as a destroyer of grasshoppers that the dickcissel excels. [1901, Sylvester D. Judd, The Relation of Sparrows to Agriculture, page 91:]
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1924: Aristotle, Metaphysics. Translated by W. D. Ross. Nashotah, Wisconsin, USA: The Classical Library, 2001. Book 1, Part 2..
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If, then, there is something in what the poets say, and jealousy is natural to the divine power, it would probably occur in this case above all, and all who excelled in this knowledge would be unfortunate.
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Lescott gave his finest England performance alongside his former Everton team-mate Phil Jagielka, who also excelled despite playing with a fractured toe, while Parker was given a deserved standing ovation when he was substituted late on. [2011 November 12, “International friendly: England 1-0 Spain”, in BBC Sport:]
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From Rosie the Riveter to Coco Channel^([sic – meaning Coco Chanel]) (in pants!), from Amelia Earhart to the quaintrelle (the female dandy), change in women's dress has symbolized everything from the right and need to work outside the home to wearing pants as a fashion statement to excelling at a profession (even as an aviatrix) to once again claiming the right to cultivate life's pleasures. [2011, Glenda L. Swetman, Alison Trappey, “Principles of Gender-specific Medicine”, in Lawrence Charles Parish, Sarah Brenner, Marcia Ramos-e-Silva, Jennifer L. Parish, editors, Manual of Gender Dermatology, Sudbury, Mass.; Mississauga, Ont.: Jones & Bartlett Learning, →ISBN, part I (Primer of Gender Dermatology), page 9:]
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She opened; but to shut / Excelled her power: the gates wide open stood […] [1674, John Milton, Paradise lost, book II:]
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I reason, we could die : / The best vitality / Cannot excel decay; / But what of that? [a. 1887 (date written), Emily Dickinson, “[Book IV.—Time and Eternity] I reason, earth is short”, in Mabel Loomis Todd and T[homas] W[entworth] Higginson, editors, Poems, First Series, Boston, Mass.: Roberts Brothers, published 1890, →OCLC, page 134:]