colossal
Americanadjective
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extraordinarily great in size, extent, or degree; gigantic; huge.
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of or resembling a colossus.
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(initial capital letter) noting or pertaining to a classical order whose columns or pilasters span two or more stories of a building.
adjective
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of immense size; huge; gigantic
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(in figure sculpture) approximately twice life-size Compare heroic
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Also: giant. architect of or relating to the order of columns and pilasters that extend more than one storey in a façade
Usage
What does colossal mean? Colossal describes something as being very large in size, degree, or amount, as in I went to a colossal shopping mall that stretched for a mile. If something is colossal, it is enormous, gigantic, or massive. Colossal can also be used to describe a large degree of something, that is, a large amount or a large extent, like a colossal amount of boxes or a colossal advantage in the playoffs. Less commonly, colossal describes something as resembling a colossus, which is a very large statue, as in The large man was so colossal that he blocked the entire doorway. Example: Tyrannosaurus rex was a colossal dinosaur that towered over many of the smaller animals.
Related Words
See gigantic.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of colossal
First recorded in 1705–15; coloss(us) + -al 1
Explanation
Colossal describes something so large it makes you say, "Whoa!" You might have a colossal amount of homework, or see a colossal pyramid while vacationing in Egypt. Colossal can refer to an item's physical size, like a giant redwood tree, but it can also be used to describe the force or scope of something — like the colossal force of a thunderstorm that knocked down the redwood tree, or the colossal scope of your school project on the history of the redwoods that seems like it will never, ever end. It comes from the Greek word kolossos, meaning "gigantic statue."
Vocabulary lists containing colossal
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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.
"I cannot believe I am headlining this festival," Dean admitted to the crowd, reflecting on her colossal rise since she played the Big Weekend Introducing Stage in 2023.
From BBC • May 24, 2026
“To spend billions of dollars to build a subway under a street that has no ridership would have been a colossal mistake,” Yaroslavsky told The Times.
From Los Angeles Times • May 7, 2026
Despite the colossal spending in the United States, for example, opinion polls regularly show that Americans remain highly sceptical about the technology's benefits, and more worried that it spells doom for millions of jobs.
From Barron's • Apr. 25, 2026
Other men who have made colossal errors have retained their posts.
From Slate • Apr. 3, 2026
She was about to cross the room to check when the old man’s nostrils flared and he let out a colossal snore.
From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older
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.
