colossal

adjective

kə-ˈlä-səl How to pronounce colossal (audio)
Definition of colossalnext
as in gigantic
unusually large a colossal statue of the town's founder

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word colossal distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of colossal are enormous, gigantic, huge, immense, mammoth, and vast. While all these words mean "exceedingly large," colossal applies especially to a human creation of stupendous or incredible dimensions.

a colossal statue of Lincoln

How are the words enormous and immense related as synonyms of colossal?

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 could gigantic be used to replace colossal?

In some situations, the words gigantic and colossal are roughly equivalent. However, gigantic stresses the contrast with the size of others of the same kind.

a gigantic sports stadium

When can huge be used instead of colossal?

Although the words huge and colossal have much in common, huge commonly suggests an immensity of bulk or amount.

incurred a huge debt

When would mammoth be a good substitute for colossal?

While in some cases nearly identical to colossal, mammoth suggests both hugeness and ponderousness of bulk.

a mammoth boulder

When is vast a more appropriate choice than colossal?

The words vast and colossal can be used in similar contexts, but 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 colossal Shop outdoor furniture, decor, and more from Kelly Clarkson Home, Martha Stewart, Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines x Loloi, and other popular brands up to a colossal 89 percent off. —Kelsey Fredricks, People.com, 1 Mar. 2025 Today’s state-of-the-art LLMs, capable of generating text, writing codes and analyzing data, rely on colossal infrastructure for training, storage and inference. —Gerui Wang, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025 There is a mutual readiness to work to restore relations and gradually solve a colossal amount of systemic strategic problems in the global architecture. —Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025 Neymar did invite some of this colossal expectation on himself. —Nick Miller, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for colossal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colossal
  1. gigantic
  2. huge
  3. enormous
  4. giant
  5. vast
  6. massive
  7. tremendous
  8. mammoth
Adjective
  • Then try Wilmot’s Warehouse, a strangely cheerful take on working in a gigantic storage warehouse.
    — Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Explaining this, the paper proposes that the gigantic impact which formed the roughly 1,600 mile (2,500 kilometers) wide SPA basin around 4.2 billion years ago modified the chemical and physical properties of the moon's mantle in this region.
    — Andrew Jones, Space.com, 18 Mar. 2025
Definition of gigantic
Adjective
  • Watching this film will be huge, and then Coach getting on our (butts) will be big for us.
    — Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2025
  • The Atlanta Braves suffered a huge hit to the roster last season when their ace Spencer Strider went down with a torn UCL.
    — Mark Davis, Newsweek, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of huge
Adjective
  • The property also comes with an enormous 5,282 square feet of garage space and 2,295 square feet of covered porches and loggias.
    — David Caraccio, Sacramento Bee, 20 Mar. 2025
  • Last weekend's enormous storm spun 100 tornadoes so far confirmed by the National Weather Service, which is still conducting surveys.
    — John Bacon, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of enormous
Adjective
  • During that performance, Roan wore a pink gingham leather set by designer Zana Bayne—a riff on cowboy buckskins—and performed in front of a green screen with a giant tree and small critters dancing along to the song.
    — Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 14 Mar. 2025
  • The giant pepper comes covered in roasted vegetables and queso fresco.
    — Megan Stringer, Axios, 14 Mar. 2025
Definition of giant
Adjective
  • In the early days, the former chief content officer was tasked with wrangling vast supplies of DVDs of hit films that Netflix could then ship to customers in its red envelopes.
    — Ramin Setoodeh, Variety, 19 Mar. 2025
  • The vast majority are held in private facilities run by GEO or corporate competitors like CoreCivic.
    — McKenzie Funk, ProPublica, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of vast
Adjective
  • The environmental policy pivot by the Trump administration also has massive implications for the country’s ability to compete in the fast-growing global market for clean energy.
    — Alan Ohnsman, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
  • A little over two years ago, the then-British prime minister attempted to push through massive unfunded tax cuts, decimating UK government bonds before she was forced into a humiliating climbdown.
    — Anna Cooban, CNN, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of massive
Adjective
  • The sacrifice of allowing the home team to have a tremendous advantage in the NCAA Tournament is worth it in favor of a crowd that may actually be decent.
    — Mac Engel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Mar. 2025
  • Black Bag is a tremendous example that a film need not be making an explicit political point or obsessed with the political dimensions of its narrative to be worthwhile cinema.
    — Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
Definition of tremendous
Adjective
  • The good news is this: India’s mammoth endeavor to transition its power sector paves the way for significant growth across multiple sunrise sectors.
    — Radhika Kak, independent researcher at Harvard Business School and Varad Pande, partner at BCG, CNBC, 20 Mar. 2025
  • Its crowning glory: a mammoth skylight that illuminates the entire structure for ultimate chiaroscuro effect.
    — Naomi Rougeau, Robb Report, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of mammoth

Browse Nearby Words

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colossal
colossally
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Cite this Entry

“Colossal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colossal. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.

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Nglish: Translation of colossal for Spanish Speakers

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