colossal
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
extremely large in size or amount.
of enormous size, extent, or amount; often used to describe physical structures or abstract quantities like debt.
Simple“The company suffered a colossal loss of money after the project failed.”
In context“The archaeological team discovered the ruins of a colossal statue that must have dominated the city skyline for centuries.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
amazingly impressive or great in scale.
extraordinary or spectacular in nature; used to emphasize the epic quality of an event or achievement.
Simple“The concert was a colossal success and everyone talked about it for weeks.”
In context“The film was a colossal achievement in cinematography, pushing the boundaries of what digital effects could accomplish at the time.”
SynonymsAntonymsordinaryunimpressive
“He says of his birth father: “One of the few conversations I ever had with him was when he said an English degree was a colossal waste of time.”
“The hospitality industry has already been hit by colossal business rates hikes thanks to Labour, on top of their Jobs Tax and employment red tape that have driven up costs.”
From French colossal, formed from Latin colossus, from Ancient Greek κολοσσός (kolossós, “giant statue”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.