Superiority

How to spell superiority

11 letters · 6 syllables

How to pronounce superiority

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does superiority mean?

1. nounThe state or quality of being better, higher in rank, or more advanced than someone or something else.

Superiority in a sentence

• The company built its reputation on the superiority of its engineering.

• He annoyed colleagues with his constant air of superiority.

Where does superiority come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin superus, meaning 'upper' or 'higher', which itself grew from super, the everyday Latin preposition for 'above' or 'over'. From superus came the comparative form superior, literally 'higher' or 'more elevated', and Medieval Latin built the abstract noun superioritas to name the quality of being above others. English borrowed it through Old French superiorite in the late 1400s, at first in the concrete sense of higher rank or position before broadening to mean general excellence or advantage. The same super root still powers a crowd of familiar relatives, including 'superb', 'supreme', and 'supervise', all carrying that idea of being over or above. The spelling trap lives in the middle: the unstressed '-ior-' followed by '-ity' invites writers to drop a letter or mangle the vowels, so it helps to see it as superior plus -ity.

How the word is built

• super- (above)
• -ior (comparative ending)
• -ity (noun-forming suffix)