extraordinary
/ɪksˈtɹɔːrdɪn(ə)ɹi/
extraordinary means out of the ordinary; exceptional; unusual. It carries an Arena rating of 1560, earned across 9 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, extraordinary ranks #339 of 17,134 for Most Malleable Words, #3,031 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #4,154 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #4,337 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say.
extraordinary is pronounced /ɪksˈtɹɔːrdɪn(ə)ɹi/.
Why “extraordinary” is a great word
Going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary to a remarkable degree. From Latin extrāōrdinārius, from extrā ("outside, beyond") + ōrdinem ("order, rank"), first recorded in English between 1425 and 1475. Unlike "unusual," which merely marks deviation from the norm, or "outstanding," which emphasizes measurable superiority, "extraordinary" names the fundamental act of stepping outside the order of things itself—whether toward brilliance or catastrophe. It is the silent sweep of an eclipse, the weight of a stranger’s hand on your shoulder at the moment you’re ready to fall, or the uncanny competence of a helper who appears at the crisis: not simply better, but elsewhere, operating by rules not yet written, leaving the ordinary world visible only in receding rear view.
Etymology
From Latin extrāōrdinārius, from extrā ōrdinem (“outside the order”). By surface analysis, extra- + ordinary. Doublet of extraordinaire.
adj
- Out of the ordinary; exceptional; unusual.e.g.“Except in extraordinary circumstances, […]”
- Remarkably good.e.g.“an extraordinary poet”
- Special or supernumerary.e.g.“the physician extraordinary in a royal household”
noun
- Anything that goes beyond what is ordinary.e.g.“[…] the sum that will probably be wanted for each head of service during the year: it is divided into the ordinary, and the extraordinaries.” — 1787, The New Annual Register:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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