adjective
-
suggestive of a cavern in vastness, darkness, etc
cavernous hungry eyes
-
filled with small cavities; porous
-
(of rocks) containing caverns or cavities
Other Word Forms
- cavernously adverb
- intercavernous adjective
- uncavernous adjective
- uncavernously adverb
Etymology
Origin of cavernous
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Latin word cavernōsus. See cavern, -ous
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.
Inside the cavernous church, priests celebrated Mass hourly, and an electronic walkway kept visitors from lingering in front of Juan Diego’s famous cape.
From Los Angeles Times
Advocates acknowledge the challenges of making these systems work, including doing so in a manner that would match the performance of cavernous data centers stuffed with AI chips on the ground.
But that was revised down to 2,500 – which made the cavernous halls of the conference centre feel much emptier.
From BBC
The clubby Lloyd’s market connects thousands of buyers and sellers of risks daily, with deals struck in a cavernous underwriting room or the nearby bars, thronged by underwriters and brokers every lunchtime.
In between the tribute bands and memorabilia vendors, one of the big attractions was screenings of various rare or bootleg film footage, screened in cavernous hotel ballrooms.
From Salon
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.
