The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Surpass \Sur*pass"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Surpassed; p. pr. &
   vb. n. Surpassing.] [F. surpasser; sur over + passer to
   pass. See Sur-, and Pass.]
   To go beyond in anything good or bad; to perform (an
   activity) better than; to exceed; to excel.
   [1913 Webster]

         This would surpass
         Common revenge and interrupt his joy.    --Milton.
   [1913 Webster]

   Syn: To exceed; excel; outdo; outstrip.
        [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Surpassing \Sur*pass"ing\, a.
   Eminently excellent; exceeding others. "With surpassing glory
   crowned." --Milton. -- Sur*pass"ing*ly, adv. --
   Sur*pass"ing*ness, n.
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

surpassing
    adj 1: exceeding or surpassing usual limits especially in
           excellence [syn: transcendent, surpassing]
    2: far beyond what is usual in magnitude or degree; "a night of
       exceeding darkness"; "an exceptional memory"; "olympian
       efforts to save the city from bankruptcy"; "the young
       Mozart's prodigious talents" [syn: exceeding,
       exceptional, olympian, prodigious, surpassing]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

108 Moby Thesaurus words for "surpassing":
   a cut above, above, absolute, ahead, arrant, ascendant, best,
   better, capping, champion, choice, chosen, classical, complete,
   consummate, crass, decided, definitive, distinguished, downright,
   eclipsing, egregious, elect, elite, eminent, enormous, exceeding,
   excellent, excelling, excessive, extraordinary, finer, flagrant,
   for the best, glaring, great, greater, greatest, gross, handpicked,
   higher, in ascendancy, in the ascendant, incomparable, intolerable,
   major, marked, matchless, of choice, one up on, optimal, optimum,
   out-and-out, outright, outstanding, over, paramount, peerless,
   perfect, picked, positive, precious, preeminent, prime, prize,
   profound, pronounced, proper, quintessential, rank, rare, regular,
   rivaling, select, shattering, shocking, stark, stark-staring,
   super, superior, superlative, supreme, the veriest, thorough,
   thoroughgoing, topping, total, towering, transcendent,
   transcendental, transcending, ultimate, unbearable, unconscionable,
   undeniable, unequivocal, unmatchable, unmatched, unmitigated,
   unparalleled, unqualified, unrelieved, unspoiled, unsurpassable,
   unsurpassed, upper, utter, very best