adjective
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suggestive of a cavern in vastness, darkness, etc
cavernous hungry eyes
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filled with small cavities; porous
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(of rocks) containing caverns or cavities
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of cavernous
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Latin word cavernōsus. See cavern, -ous
Explanation
If something reminds you of a cave or cavern in size, shape, or feel, you can describe it with the adjective cavernous. Your cavernous basement is huge, damp, and dark, but fortunately there are no bats down there. Cavernous, "cavern," and "cave" all come from the same Latin root word cavus, meaning hollow. Anything that's vast or deep can be described as cavernous, like your favorite professor's cavernous knowledge about the subject of 17th century literature. As a medical or anatomical term, cavernous refers to something that is porous, particularly when it's filled with tiny blood vessels.
Vocabulary lists containing cavernous
Tuck Everlasting
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Esperanza Rising
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This Week in Words: August 21 - 25, 2017
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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.
Cavernous home arenas, with scatterings of spectators at most, emphasize the emptiness.
From Washington Post • Feb. 16, 2021
Cavernous factories, warehouses, outdoor restaurants, and amusement parks will be growing markets for coolers, Mishra said, especially as temperatures rise.
From The Verge • Sep. 14, 2017
Cavernous drums open proceedings on Suzanne And I, then ominous, twanging guitar lines ring out before Calvi steps up to the microphone.
From The Guardian • Jan. 15, 2011
Cavernous Congress Hall in down town Warsaw shook with chants and cheers.
From Time Magazine Archive
Cavernous clefts yawned in all directions, in the side of which lived men and women and children.
From Alec Forbes of Howglen by MacDonald, George
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.
