1
as in badness
the state or quality of being utterly evil
the enormity of the crimes committed by the Nazis
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in magnitude
the quality or state of being very large
the enormity of the canyon can only be grasped by taking a trip through its entire length
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of enormity
Astronomer or philosopher, scientist or office worker, looking up on a clear night into the enormity of space evokes a myriad of powerful feelings.
—
Luke Kemp,
Space.com,
18 June 2026
Its enormity eclipsed the hot desert sun.
—
Ian Bogost,
The Atlantic,
12 June 2026
Despite Kai Havertz opening the scoring after just six minutes, the final didn’t really spark into life until the final 20 minutes when legs got heavy, changes were made and both teams took off the handbrake and the enormity of the occasion truly set in.
—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
On their first two trips to the property, the enormity of the task at hand—and their utter naiveté in taking it on—sank in.
—
Ingrid Abramovitch,
Architectural Digest,
22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for enormity
Luke Kemp,
Space.com,
18 June 2026
Its enormity eclipsed the hot desert sun.
—
Ian Bogost,
The Atlantic,
12 June 2026
Despite Kai Havertz opening the scoring after just six minutes, the final didn’t really spark into life until the final 20 minutes when legs got heavy, changes were made and both teams took off the handbrake and the enormity of the occasion truly set in.
—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
30 May 2026
On their first two trips to the property, the enormity of the task at hand—and their utter naiveté in taking it on—sank in.
—
Ingrid Abramovitch,
Architectural Digest,
22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for enormity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enormity
Noun
-
On one side, a satanic figure named Randall Flagg who gathers his forces of badness to Las Vegas; on the other, the good guys, led by 108-year-old Mother Abigail in, of all places, Boulder.
-
The show premiered over Thanksgiving weekend, when people were tired and full and bored (and probably also horny), and countered our world’s unceasing badness with its world’s buoyant sweetness.
Noun
-
Researchers estimate an event of similar magnitude has an average return period of about 180 years.
-
On the morning of the upcoming Mars-Uranus conjunction, try to spot this eighth-magnitude star as well.
Noun
-
Denver author Josiah Hesse was raised by Evangelical parents in churches that believe in the torments of hell, that their poverty is due to their sinfulness and lack of faith.
-
This lawless crew shares dramaturgical DNA with the vice figures from medieval morality plays, personifications of sinfulness who would confide their schemes to the audience and make theatergoers their co-conspirators in a riveting game that obviously left its mark on a young Shakespeare.
Noun
-
But Supergirl doesn’t quite want to deal with the immensity of its protagonist’s feelings; her drunken stupor is often played for laughs, defined by disheveled hair, big sunglasses, and plenty of slurred speech.
-
The immensity of the body of water, which resembles an 186-mile vericose vein snaking across southern Utah, is difficult to comprehend or convey.
Noun
-
The respected 13th-century Spanish rabbi Nachmanides (Ramban) chastises Lot for the atrocity of offering his daughters in place of the angels.
-
While younger generations were taught in school about the atrocities of the Holocaust, the book found that family lore continued to sanitize the past with grandparents often painted as heroes, rescuers or victims themselves.
Noun
-
In Alaska, bush pilots often brave cruel November weather to carry ballots from the vastness of America's largest state, with some arriving after polls close.
-
This week will bring that fiery adrenaline into your soul, pushing you to explore the depths within, but also the vastness of the world and other people.
Noun
-
That was really what helped me into the character and into her evilness.
Noun
-
Nowhere in the vestiges of what was once the sprawl of corporate hugeness known as The General Electric Company are there signs that Katharine Blodgett's laboratory notebooks still exist.
-
Like Phish or Taylor Swift or The Dead, 21P have created a universe for their fans that is a self-sustaining mechanism, even if the hugeness of it doesn’t always translate into huge chart success.
Cite this Entry
“Enormity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enormity. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
