heavy

[hev-ee]

See more synonyms for heavy on Thesaurus.com

adjective, heav·i·er, heav·i·est.

of great weight; hard to lift or carry: a heavy load.
of great amount, quantity, or size; extremely large; massive: a heavy vote; a heavy snowfall.
of great force, intensity, turbulence, etc.: a heavy sea.

of more than the usual or average weight: a heavy person; heavy freight.
having much weight in proportion to bulk; being of high specific gravity: a heavy metal.
of major import; grave; serious: a heavy offense.
deep or intense; profound: a heavy thinker; heavy slumber.
Military.
1. thickly armed or equipped with guns of large size.Compare heavy cruiser.
2. (of guns) of the more powerful sizes: heavy weapons.Compare heavy artillery.
hard to bear; burdensome; harsh; oppressive: heavy taxes.
hard to cope with; trying; difficult: a heavy task.
being as indicated to an unusually great degree: a heavy buyer.
broad, thick, or coarse; not delicate: heavy lines drawn in charcoal.
weighted or laden: air heavy with moisture.
fraught; loaded; charged: words heavy with meaning.
depressed with trouble or sorrow; showing sorrow; sad: a heavy heart.
without vivacity or interest; ponderous; dull: a heavy style.
slow in movement or action; clumsy: a heavy walk.
loud and deep; sonorous: a heavy sound.
(of the sky) overcast or cloudy.
exceptionally dense in substance; insufficiently raised or leavened; thick: heavy doughnuts.
(of food) not easily digested.
being in a state of advanced pregnancy; nearing childbirth: heavy with child; heavy with young.
having a large capacity, capable of doing rough work, or having a large output: a heavy truck.
producing or refining basic materials, as steel or coal, used in manufacturing: heavy industry.
sober, serious, or somber: a heavy part in a drama.
Chemistry. of or relating to an isotope of greater than normal atomic weight, as heavy hydrogen or heavy oxygen, or to a compound containing such an element, as heavy water.
Slang.
1. very good; excellent.
2. very serious or important: a really heavy relationship.
Phonetics. (of a syllable)
1. stressed(def 12).
2. long¹(def 22).

noun, plural heav·ies.

a somber or ennobled theatrical role or character: Iago is the heavy in Othello.
the theatrical role of a villain.
an actor who plays a theatrical heavy.
Military. a gun of great weight or large caliber.
Slang. a very important or influential person: a reception for government heavies.

adverb

heavily.

Origin of heavy

before 900; Middle English hevi, Old English hefig, equivalent to hef(e) weight (akin to heave) + -ig -y¹

Related formsheav·i·ness, nouno·ver·heav·i·ness, nouno·ver·heav·y, adjectiveul·tra·heav·y, adjectiveun·heav·i·ness, nounun·heav·y, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for heavy on Thesaurus.com

1. ponderous, massive, weighty. 5. dense. 9. onerous, grievous, cumbersome; difficult, severe. 14. Heavy, momentous, weighty refer to anything having a considerable amount of figurative weight. Heavy suggests the carrying of a figurative burden: words heavy with menace. Momentous emphasizes the idea of great and usually serious consequences: a momentous occasion, statement. Weighty, seldom used literally, refers to something heavy with importance, often concerned with public affairs, which may require deliberation and careful judgment: a weighty matter, problem. 15. gloomy, mournful, dejected, despondent, downcast, downhearted. 16. tedious, tiresome, wearisome, burdensome, boring. 17. sluggish, lumbering. 19. lowering, gloomy.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for heaviest

Contemporary Examples

At the same time, the heaviest parts—the main fuselage, the engines and wings—sink to the bottom.
Did Bad Weather Bring Down AirAsia 8501?
Clive Irving
December 29, 2014
He fought alongside Russian forces in the heaviest fighting of the brief war at Tskhinvali, forcing Georgian forces to retreat.
East Ukraine: Back in the USSR
Jamie Dettmer
November 19, 2014
I was far and away the heaviest kid all through elementary school, junior high, and high school.
Ron Perlman's Secret Suicide Attempt
William O’Connor
October 28, 2014
For now though, the TOW is the heaviest American-made weapon seen on the Syrian battlefield.
The Big Weapons that the U.S. May Be Secretly Supplying to the Syrian Rebels
Thomas Gibbons-Neff
April 25, 2014
After all, the heaviest attacks on Hagel were directed at his views on Israel and his incautious comments about its supporters.
How the Chuck Hagel Fight Changed the American Jewish Landscape in Washington
J. J. Goldberg
August 20, 2013

Historical Examples

They were some way from home, and Giles was the biggest and heaviest of them all.
The Armourer's Prentices
Charlotte M. Yonge
"The less reason, then, for her being a thief," Gilder grumbled in his heaviest voice.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
The yoke of the Genoese continued longest, and was the heaviest.
The Life of Horatio Lord Nelson
Robert Southey
At this, half a score reached him their staves, and he took the stoutest and heaviest of them all.
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Howard Pyle
The most numerous shareholders, mark you—not the heaviest shareholders.
Roden's Corner
Henry Seton Merriman

British Dictionary definitions for heaviest

heavy

adjective heavier or heaviest

of comparatively great weighta heavy stone
having a relatively high densitylead is a heavy metal
great in yield, quality, or quantityheavy rain; heavy traffic
great or considerableheavy emphasis
hard to bear, accomplish, or fulfilheavy demands
sad or dejected in spirit or moodheavy at heart
coarse or broada heavy line; heavy features
(of soil) having a high clay content; cloggy
solid or fatheavy legs
(of an industry) engaged in the large-scale complex manufacture of capital goods or extraction of raw materialsCompare light 2 (def. 19)
serious; grave
military
1. armed or equipped with large weapons, armour, etc
2. (of guns, etc) of a large and powerful type
(of a syllable) having stress or accentuationCompare light 2 (def. 24)
dull and uninterestinga heavy style
prodigiousa heavy drinker
(of cakes, bread, etc) insufficiently leavened
deep and louda heavy thud
(of music, literature, etc)
1. dramatic and powerful; grandiose
2. not immediately comprehensible or appealing
slang
1. unpleasant or tedious
2. wonderful
3. (of rock music) having a powerful beat; hard
weighted; burdenedheavy with child
clumsy and slowheavy going
permeatinga heavy smell
cloudy or overcast, esp threatening rainheavy skies
not easily digestiblea heavy meal
(of an element or compound) being or containing an isotope with greater atomic weight than that of the naturally occurring elementheavy hydrogen; heavy water
horse racing (of the going on a racecourse) soft and muddy
slang using, or prepared to use, violence or brutalitythe heavy mob
heavy on informal using large quantities ofthis car is heavy on petrol

noun plural heavies

1. a villainous role
2. an actor who plays such a part
military
1. a large fleet unit, esp an aircraft carrier or battleship
2. a large calibre or weighty piece of artillery
the heavies (usually plural) informal a serious newspaperthe Sunday heavies
informal a heavyweight boxer, wrestler, etc
slang a man hired to threaten violence or deter others by his presence
Scot strong bitter beer

adverb

1. in a heavy manner; heavilytime hangs heavy
2. (in combination)heavy-laden

Derived Formsheavily, adverbheaviness, noun

Word Origin

Old English hefig; related to hebban to heave, Old High German hebīg

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 heaviest

heavy

n.

mid-13c., "something heavy; heaviness," from heavy (adj.). Theatrical sense of "villain" is 1880.

heavy

adj.

Old English hefig "heavy, having much weight; important, grave; oppressive; slow, dull," from Proto-Germanic *hafiga "containing something; having weight" (cf. Old Saxon, Old High German hebig, Old Norse hofugr, Middle Dutch hevich, Dutch hevig), from PIE *kap- "to grasp" (see capable). Jazz slang sense of "profound, serious" is from 1937 but would have been comprehensible to an Anglo-Saxon. Heavy industry recorded from 1932. Heavy metal attested by 1839 in chemistry; in nautical jargon from at least 1744 in sense "large-caliber guns on a ship.

While we undervalue the nicely-balanced weight of broadsides which have lately been brought forward with all the grave precision of Cocker, we are well aware of the decided advantages of heavy metal. ["United Services Journal," London, 1830]

As a type of rock music, from 1972.

Idioms and Phrases with heaviest

heavy

In addition to the idioms beginning with heavy

heavy going
heavy hand, with a
heavy heart, with a
heavy hitter

also see:

hot and heavy
make heavy weather of
play the heavy
time hangs heavy

heavy

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Synonyms

Examples from the Web for heaviest

Contemporary Examples

At the same time, the heaviest parts—the main fuselage, the engines and wings—sink to the bottom.

He fought alongside Russian forces in the heaviest fighting of the brief war at Tskhinvali, forcing Georgian forces to retreat.

I was far and away the heaviest kid all through elementary school, junior high, and high school.

For now though, the TOW is the heaviest American-made weapon seen on the Syrian battlefield.

After all, the heaviest attacks on Hagel were directed at his views on Israel and his incautious comments about its supporters.

Historical Examples

They were some way from home, and Giles was the biggest and heaviest of them all.

"The less reason, then, for her being a thief," Gilder grumbled in his heaviest voice.

The yoke of the Genoese continued longest, and was the heaviest.

At this, half a score reached him their staves, and he took the stoutest and heaviest of them all.

The most numerous shareholders, mark you—not the heaviest shareholders.

heavy

Word Origin

Word Origin and History for heaviest

heavy

n.

heavy

adj.

Idioms and Phrases with heaviest

heavy

Origin of heavy