From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishextraordinaryex‧traor‧di‧na‧ry /ɪkˈstrɔːdənəri $ ɪkˈstrɔːrdn-eri, ˌekstrəˈɔːr-/ ●●○ S3 W3 adjective 1 STRANGEvery unusual or surprising It took an extraordinary amount of work. It’s extraordinary that he should make exactly the same mistake again.quite/most extraordinary British English Chris’s behaviour that morning was quite extraordinary.extraordinary thing to do/say/happen What an extraordinary thing to do!how extraordinary! British English spoken (=used to express surprise)► see thesaurus at surprising2 VERYvery much greater or more impressive than usual SYN incredible a woman of extraordinary beauty an extraordinary talent3 → extraordinary meeting/session etc4 → envoy/ambassador/minister extraordinary
Examples from the Corpus
extraordinary• The whole incident had been quite extraordinary.• The view from up here is extraordinary.• According to Shafer, many people in high positions hold some extraordinary beliefs.• Everything about the woman -- her hair, eyes, and jewellery -- gleamed with extraordinary brilliance.• He said it was an extraordinary decision and would send many industries spinning into recession.• It is not the story of extraordinary families.• A madness, an extraordinary fanaticism, took possession of all these new worshippers of the sun.• The show's ratings were extraordinary - it was a huge success.• Sometimes this sympathy could involve quite extraordinary leniency.• He's the most extraordinary man I've ever met.• He really was a most extraordinary man.• At this point I was witness to an extraordinary, moving and almost frightening scene.• As the story unfolds, first Axel and then Alec come to wield extraordinary power in Washington without running for elective office.• That would give them extraordinary power over the lives of other people on a level simply not acceptable in a democracy.• Their system of working can lead to extraordinary scenes.• The man's story was so extraordinary that I didn't know whether to believe him or not.• She left her husband, and in 1912 that was an extraordinary thing to do.• Bley plays acoustic piano in duo with Steve Swallow, and their rapport projects extraordinary warmth on this delightful album.quite/most extraordinary• As normal as Nechita seems, she is clearly quite extraordinary.• Edith Taylor's story is one of the most extraordinary.• Instead he found something quite extraordinary.• The contrast between the images is quite extraordinary.• And now, quite slowly, there began to creep over Matilda a most extraordinary and peculiar feeling.• The flounder has become adapted to bottom-living to a quite extraordinary degree.• This is a quite extraordinary extrapolation from experience.• They were the most extraordinary eyes he had ever seen.From Longman Business Dictionaryextraordinaryex‧tra‧or‧di‧na‧ry /ɪkˈstrɔːdənəriɪkˈstrɔːrdn-eri, ˌekstrəˈɔːr-/ adjective [only before a noun] ACCOUNTING an extraordinary cost etc is one that does not happen regularly and is not related to a company’s usual business activitiesSYNEXCEPTIONALThe results represent an operating loss of DM170 million, combined with extraordinary write-offs and costs connected with the layoff of 840 workers at three of its plants.Origin extraordinary (1400-1500) Latin extraordinarius, from extra ordinem “out of the usual course”, from ordo “order” 