Synonym Chooser

How is the word enormous distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of enormous are colossal, gigantic, huge, immense, mammoth, and vast. While all these words mean "exceedingly large," enormous and immense both suggest an exceeding of all ordinary bounds in size or amount or degree, but enormous often adds an implication of abnormality or monstrousness.

an enormous expense
an immense shopping mall

When would colossal be a good substitute for enormous?

While in some cases nearly identical to enormous, colossal applies especially to a human creation of stupendous or incredible dimensions.

a colossal statue of Lincoln

Where would gigantic be a reasonable alternative to enormous?

The synonyms gigantic and enormous are sometimes interchangeable, but gigantic stresses the contrast with the size of others of the same kind.

a gigantic sports stadium

When could huge be used to replace enormous?

While the synonyms huge and enormous are close in meaning, huge commonly suggests an immensity of bulk or amount.

incurred a huge debt

When might mammoth be a better fit than enormous?

Although the words mammoth and enormous have much in common, mammoth suggests both hugeness and ponderousness of bulk.

a mammoth boulder

When can vast be used instead of enormous?

In some situations, the words vast and enormous are roughly equivalent. However, vast usually suggests immensity of extent.

the vast Russian steppes

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 enormous In a film that is often richly photographed despite a modest budget, the enormous grounds filled with bright red tomatoes feel like clever visual shortcuts to cinematic meaning. Tomris Laffly, Variety, 16 Sep. 2025 Should Trump’s unprecedented second state visit run as smoothly as everyone around the king and the president will be hoping for, there will be enormous relief, and praise for Charles’s diplomatic skills. Alexander Larman, Time, 16 Sep. 2025 Visitors should pair the shut-ins with a stop at Elephant Rocks State Park, about a 15-minute drive away, which gets its name from a series of enormous pink granite boulders that are said to resemble circus elephants standing trunk to tail. Nicholas Derenzo, AFAR Media, 16 Sep. 2025 This year, the story of Michigan is one of enormous partisan divide. Isabella Volmert, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for enormous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enormous
Adjective
  • The Studio Ends Big Night With Record Wins Seth Rogen closed out a huge night for Apple TV+’s The Studio, which won best comedy.
    Toni Fitzgerald, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Stewart has also become a huge advocate for New Yorkers who were exposed to deadly toxins during the 9/11 attacks, and even spoke before Congress in 2019 to urge the passing of a bill that would provide aid to victims.
    Keith Langston, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Harried enjoyed a colorful green and purple display with vast pillars reaching high into the sky, as well as a subtle green glow as activity began to wane.
    Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Meeting rising demand requires vast data centers, each dependent on electricity, cooling water, and fiber connectivity.
    Maurice Obeid, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Kirk’s death brought a tremendous response across the political spectrum.
    Ross O'Keefe, The Washington Examiner, 17 Sep. 2025
  • But mortgage rates remain elevated above 6%, freezing activity in the housing market that enjoyed a tremendous boom during the pandemic thanks to sub-3% mortgage rates.
    Preston Fore, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • You may be relieved to know that this book does not involve a gigantic replica of anyone’s birth canal.
    Jamie Harrow, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
  • Royer, who worked as an architect before joining Ford 15 years ago, said the miniature clay world headquarters will be something people can use to navigate the real-life gigantic space.
    Jamie L. LaReau, Freep.com, 16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • The same goes for its overall profile, though, there’s a lot going on in its front fascia—the side venting is seemingly there for function, but the massive grille is… a lot.
    Peter Nelson, Forbes.com, 20 Sep. 2025
  • The mining of coal, for example, unleashes massive amounts of methane into the atmosphere.
    Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • But things get real when an actual giant anaconda appears, turning their comically chaotic movie set into a deadly situation.
    Sharareh Drury, PEOPLE, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Texas Ordering amid the heat and smoke of Kreuz’s massive pit room, where the countermen pull giant hunks of beef brisket and shoulder clod from the brick pits and carve them on round butcher blocks, remains an essential Texas barbecue experience.
    Robert F. Moss, Southern Living, 17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Like an amulet, or a bible, the immense and somehow lingering grief and rage flowing through it is with me everywhere.
    Sara Stridsberg September 15, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2025
  • There is immense comfort in shared failure; there is immense career risk in an unconventional success that cannot be easily explained to a board.
    Benjamin D. Summers, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • According to Cook, Apple shareholders are not protesting the company's colossal domestic manufacturing spend.
    Julie Coleman, CNBC, 15 Sep. 2025
  • And so, with these four short works, the divide between the fantastical and the real, the inside and the outside collapses, laying bare this colossal network connecting us all.
    Manuel Muñoz, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Enormous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enormous. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.

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