extravagant

English

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English extravagaunt, from Middle French extravagant and its etymon Medieval Latin extravagans, past participle of extravagor (“to wander beyond”), from Latin extra (“beyond”) + vagor (“to wander, stray”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɪkˈstɹævəɡənt/

• Audio (Received Pronunciation):

  (file)

Adjective

extravagant (comparative more extravagant, superlative most extravagant)

1. Exceeding the bounds of something; roving; hence, foreign.

   Synonyms: rangy, vagrant, wandering

   • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:

     The extravagant and erring spirit hies / To his confine.

2. Extreme; wild; excessive; unrestrained.

   Synonyms: immoderate, lavish, unrestrained; see also Thesaurus:excessive

   extravagant acts, praise, or abuse

   • 1711 September 14 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “MONDAY, September 3, 1711”, in The Spectator, number 160; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […], volume II, New York, N.Y.: D[aniel] Appleton & Company, 1853, →OCLC:

     There appears something nobly wild and extravagant in great natural geniuses.

     The spelling has been modernized.

   • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 1, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:

     The half-dozen pieces […] were painted white and carved with festoons of flowers, birds and cupids. […] The bed was the most extravagant piece. Its graceful cane halftester rose high towards the cornice and was so festooned in carved white wood that the effect was positively insecure, as if the great couch were trimmed with icing sugar.

3. Exorbitant

   Synonyms: extortionate, inordinate; see also Thesaurus:exorbitant

   • 2013 June 8, “Obama goes troll-hunting”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, page 55:

     According to this saga of intellectual-property misanthropy, these creatures [patent trolls] roam the business world, buying up patents and then using them to demand extravagant payouts from companies they accuse of infringing them. Often, their victims pay up rather than face the costs of a legal battle.

4. Profuse in expenditure; prodigal; wasteful.

   Synonyms: profligate, squandering; see also Thesaurus:prodigal

   an extravagant man

   extravagant expense

   • 1834–1874, George Bancroft, History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent, volume (please specify |volume=I to X), Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company [et al.], →OCLC:

     some of the Quakers were extravagant and foolish

Derived terms

• extravagancy
• extravagantly
• extravagantness
• overextravagant
• unextravagant

Related terms

• vagabond
• extravagance
• extravagation

Translations

exceeding the bounds of something

• Bulgarian: екстравага́нтен (bg) m (ekstravagánten)
• Catalan: extravagant (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 奢侈 (zh) (shèchí), 奢華 / 奢华 (zh) (shēhuá)

• Czech: výstřední (cs) m
• Dutch: extravagant (nl), buitenissig (nl)
• Finnish: ekstravagantti, liioitteleva (fi)
• French: extravagant (fr)
• Galician: extravagante m or f
• Georgian: ექსტრავაგანტული (eksṭravaganṭuli)
• German: extravagant (de)
• Indonesian: melewah (id)
• Italian: stravagante (it), estravagante
• Korean: 사치(奢侈) (ko) (sachi)
• Latin: profūsus
• Polish: ekstrawagancki (pl) m
• Portuguese: extravagante (pt)
• Romanian: extravagant (ro)
• Russian: неумеренный (ru) (neumerennyj), непоме́рный (ru) (nepomérnyj)
• Spanish: extravagante (es)
• Swedish: extravagant (sv)

exorbitant

• Bulgarian: прекоме́рен (bg) m (prekoméren)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 奢侈 (zh) (shèchí)

• Galician: exorbitante m or f
• Latin: prōdigus
• Old English: oferranc
• Russian: чрезме́рный (ru) m (črezmérnyj)

profuse in expenditure; prodigal; wasteful

• Arabic: مُسْرِف (musrif)
• Ivatan: michawaw
• Indonesian: mentereng (id)
• Tagalog: bulagsak
• Thai: ฟุ่มเฟือย (th) (fûm-fʉai), สุรุ่ยสุร่าย (th) (sù-rûi-sù-râai)

Further reading

• “extravagant”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “extravagant”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin extrāvagantem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [əks.tɾə.βəˈɣan]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [əks.tɾə.vəˈɣant]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [eks.tɾa.vaˈɣant]

Adjective

extravagant m or f (masculine and feminine plural extravagants)

1. extravagant

Further reading

• “extravagant” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
• “extravagant”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025.
• “extravagant”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], 2007 April

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French extravagant.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌɛkstraːvaːˈɣɑnt/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ex‧tra‧va‧gant

Adjective

extravagant (comparative extravaganter, superlative extravagantst)

1. extravagant

Declension

Declension of extravagant
uninflected	extravagant
inflected	extravagante
comparative	extravaganter
		positive	comparative	superlative
predicative/adverbial		extravagant	extravaganter	het extravagantst het extravagantste
indefinite	m./f. sing.	extravagante	extravagantere	extravagantste
	n. sing.	extravagant	extravaganter	extravagantste
	plural	extravagante	extravagantere	extravagantste
definite		extravagante	extravagantere	extravagantste
partitive		extravagants	extravaganters	—

Derived terms

• extravagantie

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin extravagantem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛk.stʁa.va.ɡɑ̃/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Switzerland):

  (file)

Adjective

extravagant (feminine extravagante, masculine plural extravagants, feminine plural extravagantes)

1. extravagant

Derived terms

• extravagamment

Related terms

• extravagance

Further reading

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

German

Etymology

Borrowed from French extravagant.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

extravagant (strong nominative masculine singular extravaganter, comparative extravaganter, superlative am extravagantesten)

1. extravagant

Declension

Positive forms of extravagant

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist extravagant	sie ist extravagant	es ist extravagant	sie sind extravagant
strong declension (without article)	nominative	extravaganter	extravagante	extravagantes	extravagante
	genitive	extravaganten	extravaganter	extravaganten	extravaganter
	dative	extravagantem	extravaganter	extravagantem	extravaganten
	accusative	extravaganten	extravagante	extravagantes	extravagante
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der extravagante	die extravagante	das extravagante	die extravaganten
	genitive	des extravaganten	der extravaganten	des extravaganten	der extravaganten
	dative	dem extravaganten	der extravaganten	dem extravaganten	den extravaganten
	accusative	den extravaganten	die extravagante	das extravagante	die extravaganten
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein extravaganter	eine extravagante	ein extravagantes	(keine) extravaganten
	genitive	eines extravaganten	einer extravaganten	eines extravaganten	(keiner) extravaganten
	dative	einem extravaganten	einer extravaganten	einem extravaganten	(keinen) extravaganten
	accusative	einen extravaganten	eine extravagante	ein extravagantes	(keine) extravaganten

Comparative forms of extravagant

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist extravaganter	sie ist extravaganter	es ist extravaganter	sie sind extravaganter
strong declension (without article)	nominative	extravaganterer	extravagantere	extravaganteres	extravagantere
	genitive	extravaganteren	extravaganterer	extravaganteren	extravaganterer
	dative	extravaganterem	extravaganterer	extravaganterem	extravaganteren
	accusative	extravaganteren	extravagantere	extravaganteres	extravagantere
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der extravagantere	die extravagantere	das extravagantere	die extravaganteren
	genitive	des extravaganteren	der extravaganteren	des extravaganteren	der extravaganteren
	dative	dem extravaganteren	der extravaganteren	dem extravaganteren	den extravaganteren
	accusative	den extravaganteren	die extravagantere	das extravagantere	die extravaganteren
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein extravaganterer	eine extravagantere	ein extravaganteres	(keine) extravaganteren
	genitive	eines extravaganteren	einer extravaganteren	eines extravaganteren	(keiner) extravaganteren
	dative	einem extravaganteren	einer extravaganteren	einem extravaganteren	(keinen) extravaganteren
	accusative	einen extravaganteren	eine extravagantere	ein extravaganteres	(keine) extravaganteren

Superlative forms of extravagant

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist am extravagantesten	sie ist am extravagantesten	es ist am extravagantesten	sie sind am extravagantesten
strong declension (without article)	nominative	extravagantester	extravaganteste	extravagantestes	extravaganteste
	genitive	extravagantesten	extravagantester	extravagantesten	extravagantester
	dative	extravagantestem	extravagantester	extravagantestem	extravagantesten
	accusative	extravagantesten	extravaganteste	extravagantestes	extravaganteste
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der extravaganteste	die extravaganteste	das extravaganteste	die extravagantesten
	genitive	des extravagantesten	der extravagantesten	des extravagantesten	der extravagantesten
	dative	dem extravagantesten	der extravagantesten	dem extravagantesten	den extravagantesten
	accusative	den extravagantesten	die extravaganteste	das extravaganteste	die extravagantesten
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein extravagantester	eine extravaganteste	ein extravagantestes	(keine) extravagantesten
	genitive	eines extravagantesten	einer extravagantesten	eines extravagantesten	(keiner) extravagantesten
	dative	einem extravagantesten	einer extravagantesten	einem extravagantesten	(keinen) extravagantesten
	accusative	einen extravagantesten	eine extravaganteste	ein extravagantestes	(keine) extravagantesten

Related terms

• Extravaganz

Further reading

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

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French extravagant.

Adjective

extravagant m or n (feminine singular extravagantă, masculine plural extravaganți, feminine and neuter plural extravagante)

1. extravagant

Declension

Declension of extravagant

		singular				plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine		masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	extravagant		extravagantă		extravaganți	extravagante
	definite	extravagantul		extravaganta		extravaganții	extravagantele
genitive- dative	indefinite	extravagant		extravagante		extravaganți	extravagante
	definite	extravagantului		extravagantei		extravaganților	extravagantelor

Swedish

Adjective

extravagant (comparative extravagantare, superlative extravagantast)

1. extravagant

Declension

Inflection of extravagant

Indefinite	positive	comparative	superlative1
common singular	extravagant	extravagantare	extravagantast
neuter singular	extravagant	extravagantare	extravagantast
plural	extravaganta	extravagantare	extravagantast
masculine plural2	extravagante	extravagantare	extravagantast
Definite	positive	comparative	superlative
masculine singular3	extravagante	extravagantare	extravagantaste
all	extravaganta	extravagantare	extravagantaste

¹ The indefinite superlative forms are only used in the predicative.
² Dated or archaic.
³ Only used, optionally, to refer to things whose natural gender is masculine.

Related terms

• extravagans

References

• extravagant in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• extravagant in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• extravagant in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)