different between incredible vs exceptional

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin incr?dibilis (“that cannot be believed”), from in- (“not”) + cr?dibilis (“worthy of belief”), from cr?d? (“believe”).

Pronunciation

• (US) enPR: ?ngkr?'d?b?l, IPA^(key): /???k??d?b?l/, [????k??????b??], [????k??????b??]
• (UK) IPA^(key): /???k??d?b?l/
• Rhymes: -?d?b?l

Adjective

incredible (comparative more incredible, superlative most incredible)

1. (literally) Too implausible to be credible; beyond belief; unbelievable. [from 15th c.]
   • 1980 September 16, Senator John Glenn, quoted in William A. Schwartz et al., The Nuclear Seduction: Why the Arms Race Doesn’t Matter—And What Does, University of California Press (1990, 1993), ?ISBN, page 29:

     I get lost in what is credible and not credible. This whole thing gets so incredible when you consider wiping out whole nations, it is difficult to establish credibility.

   • 2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity, Penguin 2010, page 796:

     He therefore found revealed religion incredible in a literal sense, and, as Bayle had done before him, he radically separated morality from the practice of organized religion.

2. (figuratively) Amazing; astonishing; awe-inspiring.

3. (figuratively) Marvellous; profoundly affecting; wonderful.

Synonyms

• unbelievable

Antonyms

• credible

Related terms

Translations

English

Etymology

exception +? -al

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?k?s?p??n?l/
• Hyphenation: ex?cep?tion?al

Adjective

exceptional (comparative more exceptional, superlative most exceptional)

1. Forming an exception; not ordinary; uncommon; rare.

   What an exceptional flower!

2. Better than the average; superior due to exception or rarity.

   The quality of the beer was exceptional.

3. (geometry) Corresponding to something of lower dimension under a birational correspondence.

   an exceptional curve; an exceptional divisor

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:excellent
• egregious (most often used negatively, however)

Antonyms

• (forming an exception): ordinary, categorical, common, general, usual
• (superior due to exception or rarity): ordinary, mediocre, commonplace

Derived terms

• exceptional space
• exceptionally
• exceptionalism

Translations

Noun

exceptional (plural exceptionals)

1. An exception, or something having an exceptional value
   • 1909, Pediatrics (volume 21, page 276)

     Above and beyond all these exceptionals, by reason of divergencies from the norms of mental and of physical status, there are quite a number of moral defectives.