formidable
Americanadjective
-
causing fear, apprehension, or dread.
a formidable opponent.
- Antonyms:
- pleasant
-
of discouraging or awesome strength, size, difficulty, etc.; intimidating.
a formidable problem.
-
arousing feelings of awe or admiration because of grandeur, strength, etc.
-
of great strength; forceful; powerful.
formidable opposition to the proposal.
adjective
-
arousing or likely to inspire fear or dread
-
extremely difficult to defeat, overcome, manage, etc
a formidable problem
-
tending to inspire awe or admiration because of great size, strength, excellence, etc
Other Word Forms
- formidability noun
- formidableness noun
- formidably adverb
- nonformidability noun
- nonformidable adjective
- nonformidableness noun
- nonformidably adverb
- quasi-formidable adjective
- quasi-formidably adverb
- superformidable adjective
- superformidableness noun
- superformidably adverb
- unformidable adjective
- unformidableness noun
- unformidably adverb
Etymology
Origin of formidable
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from French, from Latin formīdābilis “causing fear,” from formīd(āre) “to fear” + -ābilis -able
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.
Nevertheless, she is one of the series’ most formidable characters and the model of resolute ambition.
From Salon
A proper Englishwoman whose husband, Arthur, served in Burma, she has been formidable all her life, with an unshakeable faith in God and the empire.
The deals show that OpenAI’s fundraising machine remains formidable even as questions about how it will pay for expansion plans remain largely unanswered.
You hesitate for an instant, torn between the invitingly warm lower level and the formidable set of stairs leading upward.
SpaceX told employees it is preparing for a potential public offering next year, confirming a potential listing for a company that has built formidable rocket and satellite businesses since Elon Musk founded it in 2002.
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.
