very good; of the highest quality
"made an excellent speech"
"he was a splendid teacher"
"a first-class mind"
Having excelled, having surpassed.
"After months of rigorous training, she finally ran an excellent time in the marathon, shattering her previous record by nearly a minute."
In plain English: Excellent means something is really good and much better than average.
"The food at this restaurant was excellent."
Usage: Use "excellent" to describe something of outstanding quality or performance that surpasses ordinary standards. Avoid using it merely to mean "good" when you want to emphasize exceptional superiority.
Excellently.
"The excellent singer delivered every note perfectly during her solo performance."
In plain English: Excellent means doing something very well or with great skill.
"The play was excellent, with every actor delivering a memorable performance."
Usage: Do not use "excellent" as an adverb; instead, use the word "excellently" to describe how an action is performed. For example, say "she sang excellently" rather than the incorrect "she sang excellent."
The word "excellent" comes from the Latin excellēns, meaning "elevated" or "exalted." It entered English via Middle French and originally described something that stood high above others before taking on its current sense of being very good.