Synonyms of excelling

excelling

verb

present participle of excel

as in exceeding

to be greater, better, or stronger than

the special effects in this new sci-fi extravaganza excel any that we've seen previously

Synonyms & Similar Words

• exceeding
• surpassing
• eclipsing
• topping
• outshining
• bettering
• transcending
• outdoing
• beating
• outstripping
• outclassing
• mastering
• outdistancing
• towering (over)
• overcoming
• outmatching
• overtopping
• overshadowing
• outgunning
• going one better
• defeating
• outpacing
• outperforming
• outrunning
• conquering
• surmounting
• outweighing
• running circles around
• outracing
• besting
• overpassing
• subduing
• prevailing (over)
• outcompeting
• overmatching
• crushing
• winning (against)
• licking
• shaming
• trumping
• trouncing
• one-upping
• routing
• trimming
• clobbering
• triumphing (over)
• whipping
• thrashing
• worsting
• walloping
• overbearing
• drubbing
• outbalancing
• skunking

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• losing (to)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of excelling

Jack Wolf Westwood Lincoln Riley talks a big game about excelling in the Big Ten, but in losing badly to Oregon and its backup quarterback, USC probably couldn’t win the Pac-12 this year. — Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2026

Golden State was the best defensive team in the WNBA during the regular season by a convincing margin, particularly excelling at protecting the paint. — Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026

The holistic approach was designed to highlight cities that perform consistently well across all categories, rather than excelling in only one or two areas. — Lauren Dana Ellman, Travel + Leisure, 1 Sep. 2026

Highlights of Daniels excelling for the Tigers in big games might be considered within the ambit of newsworthiness and defeat a right-of-publicity claim. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Aug. 2026

Several players impressed, with fifth-round pick Jacob Monk excelling at left guard, working with the first-team offense and showing versatility. — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026

Power of women CEOs Stock performance aside, women chief executives are already excelling in their management roles in a trend Lizarraga first noticed about 20 years ago. — Michelle Fox, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026

Willis grew up as a dancer, excelling in ballet, contemporary, jazz and hip-hop, and dancing competitively at a private studio and throughout high school. — Gustavo Turner, HollywoodReporter, 24 July 2026

Ross has been a reliable purveyor of opulent vacation rap, excelling at the kind of empty-calorie singles that go down smooth and leave no real lasting impact. — Dash Lewis, Pitchfork, 23 July 2026