Meaning & use
excess
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Meanings
nounsingular
An amount that is more than is needed, allowed or normal.
Grammar: Usually singular and followed by of: an excess of caution.
Patterns
- an excess of something
- in excess of something
An excess of salt in the soup ruined the flavor.
Drivers caught traveling in excess of the speed limit will be fined.
There was an excess of enthusiasm and a shortage of planning.
adjectivebefore a noun
More than the usual or allowed amount; extra.
Grammar: Comes before a noun: excess baggage, excess fat.
Patterns
- excess baggage
- excess weight
Airlines charge a fee for excess baggage.
The plant stores excess water in its leaves.
He trimmed the excess fat from the meat.
nounusually pluraldisapproving
Behavior that goes too far, especially in eating, drinking or spending.
Grammar: Often plural when meaning acts of overindulgence: the excesses of youth.
Patterns
- the excesses of something
- to excess
The tabloids reported on the singer's excesses.
He drank to excess at the party and regretted it.
The film condemns the excesses of the rich.
Word forms
| plural | excesses |
|---|
Common combinations
- in excess of
- The bill came to in excess of five hundred dollars.
- to excess
- She exercised to excess and injured herself.
- excess baggage
- We paid for excess baggage at the airport.
- excess weight
- Doctors advise losing excess weight.
- excess capacity
- The factory has excess capacity this season.
- an excess of caution
- They acted out of an excess of caution.
Synonyms and how they differ
- surplus
- Surplus often means a useful leftover amount, while excess suggests too much.
- surfeit
- Surfeit is formal and suggests an unpleasant overload, usually of food or something similar.
- glut
- Glut describes a market flooded with a product, which is narrower than excess.
- extra
- Extra is neutral and does not suggest anything is wrong, unlike excess.
Opposites
Word family
- excessive adjective
- going beyond what is reasonable
- excessively adverb
- to an unreasonable degree
- exceed verb
- to go beyond a limit
- excessiveness noun
- the quality of being excessive
Commonly confused: excess or access?
excess vs access
Access is the means or right to enter or use something, while excess means too much of something.
Practice
The airline charged her extra because her suitcase was in ___ of the weight limit.
Choose one answer.
In excess of means greater than. Access sounds similar but means a way in, and exceed is a verb that does not fit after in.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “excess”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.