size
1 Americannoun
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the spatial dimensions, proportions, magnitude, or bulk of anything.
the size of a farm; the size of the fish you caught.
-
considerable or great magnitude.
to seek size rather than quality.
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one of a series of graduated measures for articles of manufacture or trade.
children's sizes of shoes.
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a fortune of great size.
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actual condition, circumstance, or state of affairs.
That's about the size of it.
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a number of population or contents.
What size is Springfield, Illinois? The size of that last shipment was only a dozen.
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Obsolete. a fixed standard of quality or quantity, as for food or drink.
verb (used with object)
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to separate or sort according to size.
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to make of a certain size.
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Metallurgy. to press (a sintered compact) to close tolerances.
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Obsolete. to regulate or control according to a fixed standard.
verb phrase
idioms
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of a size, of the same or similar size.
The two poodles are of a size.
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try on for size,
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to put on briefly in order to test the fit of, as a garment or shoes.
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to consider, evaluate, do, or use before taking further action.
We'll try the plan on for size to see whether it's practical.
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noun
verb (used with object)
noun
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the dimensions, proportions, amount, or extent of something
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large or great dimensions, etc
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one of a series of graduated measurements, as of clothing
she takes size 4 shoes
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informal state of affairs as summarized
he's bankrupt, that's the size of it
verb
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to sort according to size
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(tr) to make or cut to a particular size or sizes
noun
verb
Usage
The use of -size and -sized after large or small is redundant, except when describing something which is made in specific sizes: a large (not large-size ) organization. Similarly, in size is redundant in the expressions large in size and small in size
Synonym Usage
Size, volume, mass, bulk are terms referring to the extent or dimensions of that which has magnitude and occupies space. Size is the general word: of great size; small in size. Volume often applies to something that has no fixed shape: Smoke has volume. Mass, also, does not suggest shape, but suggests a quantity of matter in a solid body: a mass of concrete. Bulk suggests weight, and often a recognizable, though perhaps unwieldy, shape: the huge bulk of an elephant.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of size1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English noun sise, syse, originally, “control, regulation, limit,” from Old French sise, shortening and alteration of assise assize
Origin of size2
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English noun sise, syse; perhaps special use of size 1
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.
See Examples For:
It formed near the Moon's eastern edge sometime between April 11 and May 22, 2024, when an asteroid or comet roughly the size of a three- to six-story building struck the surface.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
The small feline, about the size of a domestic moggy, went under the radar because it was confused with other wild cats that share similar spots and stripes.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
It also turns the leaders of the AI companies into Lewis and Clark in coonskin caps with parchment maps, bravely surveying our country that it might understand its true size.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
Because there was just three gigantic boys in the pool, like, doing physical feats that you’ve never seen kids that size do.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
It was about the size of a small fist: brawn, furry and oddly flattened, probably by an ice-fall.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
If he must stand up, he’s placed behind a generously sized podium, robust enough to handle the full body-weight of his lean.
From Salon ● Sep. 16, 2026
There are several jokey videos depicting police chasing human sized cats, and Scottish drag performer Ellie Diamond has issued a video declaring that she is not the Cat in the Hat killer.
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026
Funisia was a stationary, tube-shaped organism that lived in clusters of similarly sized individuals.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
Mitchell had ordered a similarly sized expansion in 2018 that cost $727,000, company President Tim Zimmerman said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
A large machine stands on the other side, with a man- sized tray coming out of it.
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
In normal times, making the supply chain work is merely a question of sizing and timing orders.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
First introduced in 1988, the Omega Speedmaster Reduced took the Speedmaster Professional — which comes in a sizable 42mm case sizing — and slimmed it down to a chill 39mm.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
“We’re ants, we’re nothing,” I remember him saying, sizing up the state of the American left.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
Online shopping, says Charlotte, “is something I avoid, especially as I get older — I just don’t have the patience to decode the sizing differences of four different brands selling basically the same shirt.”
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
A handful of older boys were there too, leaning against the building in white jerseys emblazoned with large purple Ws, their arms crossed, sizing up the newcomers.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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.
