as in surpassing
to be greater, better, or stronger than
two vaccine developers who spent years vigorously trying to outdo one another's research
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Recent Examples of outdoing
The Bruins shot a dominant 58% from the field, well outdoing the solid 43% for the Trojans.
—
Sean Campbell, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2026
Nicole Kidman is batting 1,000 with her recent red-carpet and street style looks, but recently she's been outdoing herself with my favorite glam of her career.
—Tamim Alnuweiri, InStyle, 15 Feb. 2026
Next came Unity—conceived, portentously, in the small Canadian town of Swastika—who, outdoing her sister, developed a girlhood crush on Hitler and moved to Germany to serve the Nazis.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
Taylor Swift is taking a bow after outdoing everyone — including herself — on the Billboard charts with The Life of a Showgirl this week.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 13 Oct. 2025
The town has long been home to some of the world’s most remarkable ski resorts, each seemingly outdoing the last with grander lobbies, better views, and ever-more attentive service.
—Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Brands large and small spent much of the last 12 months outdoing each other in China, creating immersive experiences that tapped into local culture in a bid to woo aspirational customers, who have only just begun loosening their purse strings in what remains a difficult macro-economic environment.
—Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Sean Campbell, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2026
Nicole Kidman is batting 1,000 with her recent red-carpet and street style looks, but recently she's been outdoing herself with my favorite glam of her career.
—Tamim Alnuweiri, InStyle, 15 Feb. 2026
Next came Unity—conceived, portentously, in the small Canadian town of Swastika—who, outdoing her sister, developed a girlhood crush on Hitler and moved to Germany to serve the Nazis.
—Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
Taylor Swift is taking a bow after outdoing everyone — including herself — on the Billboard charts with The Life of a Showgirl this week.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 13 Oct. 2025
The town has long been home to some of the world’s most remarkable ski resorts, each seemingly outdoing the last with grander lobbies, better views, and ever-more attentive service.
—Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Brands large and small spent much of the last 12 months outdoing each other in China, creating immersive experiences that tapped into local culture in a bid to woo aspirational customers, who have only just begun loosening their purse strings in what remains a difficult macro-economic environment.
—Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outdoing
Verb
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More than 3,100 rallies are expected nationwide, surpassing the totals of previous No Kings rallies.—
Paige Moore,
AZCentral.com,
28 Mar. 2026
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Goodreau set a Division III single-season record with her 18th power-play goal, surpassing the mark set by Elmira’s Cassidy Delainey in 2015.—
John Shipley,
Twin Cities,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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An earlier December lawsuit had been dismissed by the judge, who said the organization did not sufficiently prove the president was exceeding his powers.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
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The market capitalization of a company like Apple in December 2023 reached $3 trillion, exceeding the combined GDP of at least 140 countries.—
Sven van Mourik,
The Dial,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The shutdown of Homeland Security will reach 44 days on Sunday, eclipsing the record 43-day shutdown last fall that affected all of the federal government.—
Kevin Freking,
Fortune,
28 Mar. 2026
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Gas prices are eclipsing $6 per gallon for regular unleaded at some local stations.—
Connor Letourneau,
San Francisco Chronicle,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Heat at times looked like a juggernaut against tankers this season, topping 140 points in four of those games and reaching 150 in Adebayo’s 83-point game against Washington.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
30 Mar. 2026
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Instead of major hubs like New York or Los Angeles topping the list, smaller and mid-sized cities dominated the rankings.—
Kelly McGreal,
FOXNews.com,
29 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Outdoing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outdoing. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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