e·nor·mous
(ĭ-nôŕməs)
[From Latin ēnormis, unusual, huge, monstrous, ē-, ex-, ex-, + norma, norm, Sense 2, from Middle English enormious, from Latin ēnormis.]
adjective
- Very great in size, extent, number, or degree.
- Archaic Very wicked; heinous.
derivatives
- e·noŕmous·ly
- adverb
- e·noŕmous·ness
- noun
synonyms:
enormous, immense, huge, gigantic, colossal, mammoth, tremendous, stupendous, gargantuan, vast These adjectives describe what is extraordinarily large. Enormous suggests a marked excess beyond the norm in size, amount, or degree: an enormous boulder. Immense refers to boundless or immeasurable size or extent: immense pleasure. Huge especially implies greatness of size or capacity: a huge success. Gigantic refers to size likened to that of a giant: a gigantic redwood tree. Colossal suggests a hugeness that elicits awe or taxes belief: a colossal ancient temple. Mammoth is applied to something of unwieldy hugeness: “mammoth stone figures in . . . buckled eighteenth-century pumps, the very soles of which seem mountainously tall” (Cynthia Ozick) Tremendous suggests awe-inspiring or fearsome size: ate a tremendous meal. Stupendous implies size that astounds or defies description: “The whole thing was a stupendous, incomprehensible farce” (W. Somerset Maugham) Gargantuan especially stresses greatness of capacity, as for food or pleasure: a gargantuan appetite. Vast refers to greatness of extent, size, area, or scope: “Of creatures, how few vast as the whale” (Herman Melville)
