stupendous
Americanadjective
-
causing amazement; astounding; marvelous.
stupendous news.
- Synonyms:
- extraordinary
-
amazingly large or great; immense.
a stupendous mass of information.
- Synonyms:
- prodigious, gigantic, vast, colossal
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stupendous
1965–70; < Latin stupendus, gerund of stupēre to be stunned; see -ous
Explanation
Stupendous means amazing or awesome. You just won a million dollars and are donating it to charity? That’s stupendous! While you might think of stupid as a mean word for someone who isn’t smart, it can also mean senseless or stunned. If something stuns you so much that you are amazed, it is stupendous. Think of a stupendous performance or stupendous scenery. When something is big enough to astound, also use this word. The tower rose to a stupendous height. It would take a stupendous effort to improve your D in history to an A!
Vocabulary lists containing stupendous
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List 6
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
By contrast, John M. Stahl’s stupendous 1939 melodrama “When Tomorrow Comes”—with Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne in a labor-relations tale turned hurricane-beset, star-crossed love story—was in sparkling black and white.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 10, 2026
As Damon Hill put it on our 5 Live commentary, a stupendous weekend for the young Italian, who really put Mercedes team-mate George Russell in the shade.
From BBC ● May 3, 2026
Take the stupendous performance of Apple’s stock during Cook’s tenure.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 21, 2026
The S&P 500 index, even with its recent wobbles, has returned a stupendous 273% over the past decade, or more than 14% a year.
From Barron's ● Apr. 3, 2026
Their clothing line, Oh La La, Laroux, had become the most popular brand in all of Ravenskill, and they could not keep their signature stupendous Spare ensemble in stock.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
