par excellence

English · Français · Deutsch · Thesaurus

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

par excellence

/ˌpɑːɹ ˌɛksəˈlɑːns/ UK
/ˌpɑːɹ ˈɛksəlɑːns/ UK
/ˌpɑːɹ ˌɛksəˈlɒ̃s/ UK
/ˌpɑːɹ ˈɛksəlɒ̃s/ UK
/ˌpɑr ˌɛksəˈlɑn(t)s/ US
/ˌpɑɹ ˌɛksəˈlɑns/ US

Where it comes from

Unadapted borrowing from French par excellence (“excellently, in an especially representative way; above all”), a calque of Latin per excellentiam, itself a calque of Ancient Greek κατ’ ἐξοχήν (kat’ exokhḗn).

adverb

not comparable Because or on account of one's excellence. The name of Venus is in deede but bautye, And men me fayrest call, per excellencye.
not comparable Most especially, in particular, most notably (out of a thing or person's other attributes, roles, etc.). He was par excellence a theologian.
not comparable In a superior way, in the most representative or fully-developed manner. She was par excellence the vigilant member of the house-hold.

adjective

not comparable, postpositional Being the proper or truest example of a general name. The Santo (which is St. Antonio's church, called il Santo par excellence) […]
Similar: proper
not comparable, postpositional Being a quintessential example of a general type. This is the age of invention, most certainly—the age, one may say—the age par excellence.

Thesaurus

adverb

Translations

Every language

adj being a quintessential example of a general type

Español	por antonomasia, por excelencia
Deutsch	par excellence, schlechthin
Italiano	per eccellenza
Ελληνικά	κατ’ εξοχήν kat’ exochín

Talk about this word

Cite this

MLA

"par excellence." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/par%20excellence. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

par excellence. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/par%20excellence

Chicago

"par excellence." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/par%20excellence.

BibTeX

@misc{par_excellence_2026,
  title = {par excellence},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/par%20excellence},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}