towering

[tou-er-ing]

adjective

1. very high or tall; lofty.

   a towering oak.

   Synonyms: elevated
   Antonyms: short

2. surpassing others; very great.

   a towering figure in American poetry.

3. rising to an extreme degree of violence or intensity.

   a towering rage.

4. beyond the proper or usual limits; inordinate; excessive.

   towering pride; towering ambitions.

towering

/ ˈtaʊərɪŋ /

adjective

1. very tall; lofty

2. outstanding, as in importance or stature

3. (prenominal) very intense

   a towering rage

Other Word Forms

• toweringly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of towering¹

From a late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; tower ¹, -ing ²

Synonym Study

See high.

Example Sentences

Its rooms are small and dwarfed by the towering government buildings that grace far less consequential countries from Asia to the Middle East.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

They squared up a pair of fastballs Gausman left over the plate, and made the veteran right-hander pay with two towering solo home runs.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Digital advertising billboards in the Thai capital are displaying towering black tributes to the royal matriarch, while citizens have been asked to wear dark tones and curtail celebratory public events.

Read more on Barron's

Douglass admired Lincoln’s towering sense of humanity even as he critiqued the president’s hesitations and half-steps.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The tumultuous state of affairs is supercharging a provocative, highly anticipated new exhibition titled “Monuments,” featuring nearly a dozen removed statues, some towering up to 15 feet.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• colossal 
• gigantic 
• imposing 
• lofty 
• magnificent 
• massive 
• mighty 
• monumental 
• prodigious 
• soaring 
• stately 
• tall