Excellent

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈɛksələnt/

Definitions

1. Of very high quality and deserving great praise or admiration
2. Being extraordinarily good and deserving of high regard or admiration
3. Possessing qualities that surpass normal standards, worthy of recognition and praise

Etymology: "Excellent" began as a physical image. The Latin "excellēns" meant "elevated" or "exalted," the present participle of "excellō," to rise up or raise high. Something excellent stood out above its surroundings, and the sense of rising above others gradually turned into the moral and qualitative praise we use now. The word reached English through Middle English from Old French, which had taken it from the same Latin source. Its ancestor "excellere" is built from "ex-," meaning "out" or "up," and "-cellere," meaning "to rise," so the word has always carried the idea of rising beyond the ordinary.

Synonyms: superb, outstanding, exceptional

Antonyms: poor, mediocre