mammoth

American  

[mam-uhth] / ˈmæm əθ /

noun

1. any large, elephantlike mammal of the extinct genus Mammuthus, from the Pleistocene Epoch, having hairy skin and ridged molar teeth.

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adjective

1. immensely large; huge; enormous.

   a mammoth organization.

mammoth British  

/ ˈmæməθ /

noun

1. any large extinct elephant of the Pleistocene genus Mammuthus (or Elephas ), such as M. primigenius ( woolly mammoth ), having a hairy coat and long curved tusks

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adjective

1. of gigantic size or importance

mammoth Scientific  

/ măm′əth /

1. Any of various extinct elephants of the genus Mammuthus, having long, upwardly curving tusks and thick hair. Mammoths grew to great size and lived throughout the Northern Hemisphere during the Ice Age.

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Synonym Usage

See gigantic.

Etymology

Origin of mammoth

1690–1700; < Russian mam(m)ot (now mámont ), first used in reference to remains of the animal found in Siberia; origin uncertain

Compare meaning

How does mammoth compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• mastodon vs. mammoth

Explanation

The adjective mammoth is a great way to describe something really, really big, like those huge woolly elephants they’re still finding in the melting glaciers. The word mammoth is a pretty new one, dating back only to around 1700. It was first only a noun from the Russian word mammot, meaning “earth,” and used to name the newly-discovered fossilized creature that was thought to have burrowed in the earth like a mole. The word, a rare Russian contribution to English, was not used as an adjective until around 1800 — notably when President Thomas Jefferson used it to describe a very large cheese.

Example Sentences

Having bought the 12-acre property under the assumption that the main residence on the parcel would require some simple, cosmetic updates, the TV host found herself facing a much more mammoth task.

From MarketWatch • May 27, 2026

Construction of the mammoth open-pit mine, slated to begin production in 2030, has taken the 27-year-old technician away from her seven-year-old son, who lives down the mountain in her hometown of Villa Calingasta.

From Barron's • May 23, 2026

There’s also a sand pit where children can dig up replicas of pygmy mammoth bones.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

Shareholders appeared more serious, too, probing Abel’s plans for how he would continue Buffett’s legacy and oversee Berkshire’s mammoth stock portfolio, and whether he had settled on his own successor yet.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 4, 2026

Razi and Shifa shrank under the whale, their mouths stretched in silent screams as the mammoth shadow blotted out the sky.

From "The Boy Who Met a Whale" by Nizrana Farook

Related Words

• colossal
• enormous
• gargantuan
• gigantic
• immense
• large
• massive
• monstrous
• monumental
• prodigious
• vast