I. su ‧ pe ‧ ri ‧ or 1 /suːˈpɪəriə $ sʊˈpɪriər/ BrE AmE adjective [no comparative]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: superieur , from Latin superior 'further above' , from superus 'upper' , from super ; ⇨ ↑ super- ]
1 . better, more powerful, more effective etc than a similar person or thing, especially one that you are competing against OPP inferior :
Fletcher’s superior technique brought him victory.
superior to
Your computer is far superior to mine.
He loves making fun of women. It makes him feel superior.
a vastly superior (=very much better, stronger etc) army
2 . thinking that you are better than other people – used to show disapproval:
She had that superior tone of voice.
3 . [only before noun] having a higher position or rank than someone else OPP inferior :
Don’t you usually salute a superior officer?
a superior court
4 . [only before noun] of very good quality – used especially in advertising:
a superior wine
⇨ ↑ Mother Superior
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COLLOCATIONS
■ adverbs
▪ far/vastly/greatly superior
They soon realized that the opposing team’s players were far superior to their own.
▪ infinitely superior (=very much better)
You’d be better off visiting the infinitely superior Imperial War Museum.
▪ inherently superior (=better because of its nature)
He believed that some races were inherently superior to others.
▪ morally superior
They also accuse Christians of pretending to be morally superior.
▪ technically superior
Our job is to convince consumers that our product is technically superior to its competitors.
■ nouns
▪ superior quality
Digital radios offer a superior quality of sound.
▪ superior performance
This boat meets the needs of serious yachtsmen who demand superior performance.
▪ superior knowledge/intelligence
She was always showing off her superior knowledge.
▪ superior strength/power
He used his superior strength to wrestle Ben to the ground.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ better the ↑ comparative of good:
She wants a better job.
|
The sales figures were far better than expected.
|
Lucy’s better at French than I am.
▪ superior better, especially in quality:
German cars are far superior.
|
a superior product
|
He thinks men are superior to women.
▪ preferable formal more suitable or useful – used when saying which one you prefer:
Cash would be preferable.
|
Anything would be preferable to the system we have now.
▪ be an improvement on something to be better than something that existed before:
The engine is a huge improvement on previous diesel engines.
▪ have the edge to be slightly better than another person or thing – used especially when saying which one will win in a game or competition:
Federer is likely to have the edge in Sunday’s game.
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For me, this film has the edge over the others.
▪ be miles ahead (of somebody/something) ( also be streets ahead (of somebody/something) British English ) informal to be very much better than someone or something that you are competing against:
The company is streets ahead of its rivals.
▪ there’s no comparison spoken used to emphasize that one person or thing is clearly much better than someone or something else:
There’s no comparison between the two teams.
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‘Which apartment do you prefer?' 'Well, there’s no comparison. The first one we saw is bigger, quieter, and has much nicer furniture.'
II. superior 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
someone who has a higher rank or position than you, especially in a job:
He had a good working relationship with his immediate superior (=the person directly above him) .