giant

[ jahy-uh nt ]

/ ˈdʒaɪ ənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR giant ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

(in folklore) a being with human form but superhuman size, strength, etc.

a person or thing of unusually great size, power, importance, etc.; major figure; legend: a giant in her field; an intellectual giant.

(often initial capital letter) Classical Mythology. any of the Gigantes.

Mining. monitor(def 12).

Astronomy. giant star.

adjective

unusually large, great, or strong; gigantic; huge.

greater or more eminent than others.

Nearby words

Origin of giant

1250–1300; Middle English geant < Old French < Latin gigant- (stem of gigās) < Greek Gígās; replacing Old English gigant < Latin, as above

Related formsgi·ant·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for giant

Yeah, the “Giant man-puppy” that is Gronkowski won't hold a sexual candle to the blue-eyed dreamboat.
‘A Gronking to Remember’ Speed Read: 8 Naughtiest Bits|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I knew there would be good times and bad, sickness and health, broken dishwashers and giant cockroaches in the bathroom.
You’re Never ‘Cured’ of an Eating Disorder|Carrie Arnold|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
No alarms were triggered as she strolled out of the Giant supermarket in Limerick, Pennsylvania, and nobody thought otherwise.
The Insane $11 Billion Scam at Retailers’ Return Desks|M.L. Nestel|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The forests were lush and filled with life, from giant snakes to monkeys.
The Congo's Forgotten Colonial Getaway|Nina Strochlic|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Lakes on Titan are full of methane, and the chemical is a major component of the giant planets Jupiter, Neptune, and so forth.
Methane on Mars: Life or Just Gas?|Matthew R. Francis|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The howdah, pierced all over with arrows, had something the appearance of a porcupine or a giant pincushion.
Female Warriors, Vol. I (of 2)|Ellen C. Clayton
He stayed no more with the Giant maid, but flew up into the high rocks of the cave.
The Children of Odin|Padraic Colum
Then he got into it and rowed across the lake, and coming to the giant's dwelling he hid himself, and stayed the night there.
Folk-Lore and Legends; Scandinavian|Various
A giant Irishman was standing there, with shirt collar and vest unbuttoned, and no coat on.
Following the Equator, Complete|Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
It was his fate to begin his career in an age of mediocrities and to finish it in an almost single combat with the giant.
The Life of Napoleon I (Volumes, 1 and 2)|John Holland Rose

British Dictionary definitions for giant

giant

/ (ˈdʒaɪənt) /

noun

a mythical figure of superhuman size and strength, esp in folklore or fairy talesAlso (feminine): giantess (ˈdʒaɪəntɪs)

a person or thing of exceptional size, reputation, etca giant in nuclear physics

Greek myth any of the large and powerful offspring of Uranus (sky) and Gaea (earth) who rebelled against the Olympian gods but were defeated in battle

pathol a person suffering from gigantism

astronomy See giant star

mining another word for monitor (def. 8)

adjective

remarkably or supernaturally large

architect another word for colossal

Derived Formsgiant-like, adjective

Word Origin for giant

C13: from Old French geant, from Vulgar Latin gagās (unattested), from Latin gigās, gigant-, from Greek

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for giant

giant

c.1300, from Old French geant, earlier jaiant (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *gagantem (nominative gagas), from Latin gigas "giant," from Greek gigas (genitive gigantos), one of a race of savage beings, sons of Gaia and Uranus, eventually destroyed by the gods, probably from a pre-Greek language. Replaced Old English ent, eoten, also gigant. The Greek word was used in Septuagint to refer to men of great size and strength, hence the expanded use in modern languages. Of very tall persons from 1550s; of persons who have any quality in extraordinary degree, from 1530s.

In þat tyme wer here non hauntes Of no men bot of geauntes. [Wace's Chronicle, c.1330]

giant

noun

adjective

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Origin of giant

Examples from the Web for giant

giant

noun

adjective

Word Origin for giant

giant