tremendous
Americanadjective
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extraordinarily great in size, amount, or intensity.
a tremendous ocean liner; tremendous talent.
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extraordinary in excellence.
a tremendous movie.
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dreadful or awful, as in character or effect; exciting fear; frightening; terrifying.
adjective
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vast; huge
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informal very exciting or unusual
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informal (intensifier)
a tremendous help
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archaic terrible or dreadful
Synonym Usage
See huge.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tremendous
First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin tremendus “dreadful, to be shaken by,” equivalent to trem(ere) “to shake, quake” + -endus gerund suffix
Explanation
Tremendous means extraordinarily large in size, extent, amount, power, or degree. It can also mean really marvelous and fantastic — or really awful and terrible. We often use tremendous if something is super wonderful. If someone comes into your office and tells you you just won a big contract and are getting a huge bonus, you might exclaim, “Tremendous!” Tremendous comes from the Latin for "trembling," and is connected with fear. Something tremendous can be big in a terrifying way, like the tremendous noise of an approaching hurricane, or a tremendous tidal wave about to crash on the shore.
Vocabulary lists containing tremendous
Bud, Not Buddy
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The Launch of Sputnik 1
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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.
Such changes can occur when an asteroid strikes at tremendous speed, generating powerful shock waves that pass through the surrounding rock.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 21, 2026
A tremendous amount of beige, all of it delicious.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026
"I think you're going to have a tremendous victory, actually," Trump can be heard saying on speakerphone.
From Barron's ● Oct. 19, 2026
Luka Vuskovic looks to be a tremendous acquisition from Tottenham Hotspur, and he has helped the Seagulls, who remain unbeaten at home, record a league-high five clean sheets.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
There was a tremendous fishy odor like a thousand tuna cans had been opened, and a sizable pool had formed on the ground below its mouth—blood, seawater, and mysterious shark fluids.
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
