exalt

verb

ex·​alt ig-ˈzȯlt How to pronounce exalt (audio)
exalted; exalting; exalts

transitive verb

1
: to raise in rank, power, or character
2
: to elevate by praise or in estimation : glorify
3
obsolete : elate
4
: to raise high : elevate
5
: to enhance the activity of : intensify
rousing and exalting the imaginationGeorge Eliot
exalter noun

Examples of exalt in a Sentence

His behavior has exalted the power and prestige of his office. The essay exalts the simple beauty of the country. We exalt thee, O Lord. He shamelessly exalts his own role in the peace process.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In exalting above all other concerns his personal conception of the institutional integrity of the Supreme Court, and by extension the entire judiciary, Roberts has ironically done more than anyone else to delegitimize the courts. Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 21 Mar. 2025 The sound is so present that even the smallest thing is exalted. Carlos Aguilar, IndieWire, 8 Mar. 2025 When Reacher, who refuses to be addressed by his first name, Jack, saunters into the fictional town of Margrave, Georgia, the show portrays his masculinity as exceedingly powerful yet good-natured; something to be obeyed but also preserved and exalted. Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025 With black fingernails and facial scruff in his debut years, Demna was seen as a ringleader for all things underground and alternative, exalting the grittier elements of Paris in his collections, along with jolts of S&M and punk, seen in kinky face hoods and spiky sunglasses. Miles Socha, WWD, 13 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for exalt

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin exaltare, from ex- + altus high — more at old

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of exalt was in the 15th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Exalt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exalt. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

exalt

verb
ex·​alt ig-ˈzȯlt How to pronounce exalt (audio)
1
: to raise in rank, power, or character
2
: to praise highly : glorify
exalter noun

Medical Definition

exalt

transitive verb
ex·​alt ig-ˈzȯlt How to pronounce exalt (audio)
: to cause (virulence) to increase
virulence exalted by addition of mucin to a bacterial culture
also : to increase the virulence of
exalt a virus by repeated rapid passage through susceptible hosts

More from Merriam-Webster on exalt

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