Excesses

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A quantity of resources, behaviors, or actions that goes beyond what is normal or necessary
2. Levels of consumption or actions that stray far from moderation and can result in adverse effects
3. Quantities or actions that surpass what is typical or required in a given context

Etymology: "Excesses" is simply the plural of "excess," so its story is the story of that noun. "Excess" came into Middle English as "exces," meaning "excess" but also "ecstasy," a sense that has since vanished, which shows how closely the two ideas once sat together: going beyond the normal was also a way of being carried out of yourself. The noun passed into Middle English from Old French "exces," which took it from Latin "excessus," literally "a going out" or "a loss of self-possession." That Latin noun comes from "excedere," "to go out, go beyond," the root that also gives English "exceed." Its parts are "ex-," "out," and "cedere," "to go," so the word is built on the image of stepping outside a boundary. Being in excess is therefore a matter of having walked out past the edge of what was expected.

Synonyms: surpluses, overages, abundance, plethora, superfluities

Antonyms: deficits, shortages, lack, insufficiencies, scarcities