exorbitant

From Middle English exorbitant, through Old French from Late Latin exorbitāns, present active participle of exorbitō (“to go out of the track”), from ex (“out”) + orbita (“wheel-track”); see orbit.[1] Compare French exorbitant.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɪɡˈzɔːbɪtənt/, /ɛɡˈzɔːbɪtənt/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ɪɡˈzoɹbətənt/, /ɛɡˈzoɹbətənt/

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exorbitant (comparative more exorbitant, superlative most exorbitant)

1. Exceeding proper limits; excessive or unduly high; extravagant.

   Synonyms: extortionate; see also Thesaurus:excessive

   It’s a nice car, but they are charging an exorbitant price for it.

   You also have to pay exorbitant interest if you have credit card debt.

   • 1856, George Grote, chapter XCIV, in History of Greece, volume XII, London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, part II (Continuation of Historical Greece), page 282:

     But whatever might be the internal thoughts of Macedonian officers, they held their peace before Alexander [the Great], whose formidable character and exorbitant self-estimation would tolerate no criticism.

   • 1874, Thomas Hardy, “Gabriel’s Resolve—The Visit—The Mistake”, in Far from the Madding Crowd. […], volume I, London: Smith, Elder & Co., […], →OCLC, page 38:

     Love, being an extremely exacting usurer (a sense of exorbitant profit, spiritually, by an exchange of hearts, being at the bottom of pure passions, as that of exorbitant profit, bodily or materially, is at the bottom of those of lower atmosphere), every morning his feelings were as sensitive as the money-market in calculations upon his chances.

   • 2015 January 19, Charles M[cRay] Blow, “How Expensive It Is to Be Poor”, in The New York Times (A section)‎, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2021-04-26, page 19:

     In addition, many low-income people are “unbanked” (not served by a financial institution), and thus nearly eaten alive by exorbitant fees.

Learned borrowing from Late Latin exorbitantem, present participle of exorbitō (whence exorbiter).

• IPA^(key): /ɛɡ.zɔʁ.bi.tɑ̃/

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exorbitant (feminine exorbitante, masculine plural exorbitants, feminine plural exorbitantes)

1. exorbitant
2. extortionate

• orbite

• “exorbitant”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

From Late Latin exorbitāns.

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• Rhymes: -ant

exorbitant (strong nominative masculine singular exorbitanter, comparative exorbitanter, superlative am exorbitantesten)

1. exorbitant

   Synonyms: maßlos, unverschämt

• “exorbitant” in Duden online
• “exorbitant” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Borrowed from French exorbitant, from Latin exorbitans.

exorbitant m or n (feminine singular exorbitantă, masculine plural exorbitanți, feminine and neuter plural exorbitante)

1. extortionate