Outdone

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /aʊtˈdʌn/

Definitions

1. Exceeding another person's efforts or achievements can foster both competitiveness and admiration, as doing better than someone else invites comparisons in capability and success
2. Outshining a rival in any pursuit often breeds feelings of rivalry and can prompt evaluations of one's abilities and accomplishments
3. Surpassing someone in their performance or results often creates a sense of competition and may lead to assessments of individual skill and achievement

Etymology: "Outdone" is the past participle of "outdo", and the verb is a plain compound: "out" added to "do". The "do" half descends from Old English "dōn", which carried the broad sense of performing or accomplishing that it still has today. Adding "out" in the sense of surpassing turned it into a verb meaning to go beyond what someone else has done. The "out" element traces back through Old English "ūt" to a much older Germanic root meaning outward or away from the inside. Its use as a prefix meaning "to a greater degree than" is what gives "outdo" its competitive edge: to outdo someone is to perform a deed that leaves theirs behind.

Synonyms: surpassed, exceeded

Antonyms: underperformed