mammoth

American  

[mam-uhth] / ˈmæm əθ /

noun

mammoths plural

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

---

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

---

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.

---

Synonym Usage

See gigantic.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• mammoths
  plural

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

Arsenal’s women’s side and Kroenke’s pro lacrosse team, the Colorado Mammoth, had recently taken home major trophies, too.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026

Mono County, in the Mammoth Lakes area, reported three deaths related to hantavirus.

From Los Angeles Times • May 4, 2026

Mammoth Mountain, among the state’s most popular ski resorts, reported 20 inches of snow at its main lodge over the weekend into Monday.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

She founded the company with Alon Kessel, a co-founder of renewables developer Doral whose developments include the giant Mammoth solar project in Indiana.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026

It was addressed to Dr. Smith, the Curator of the great Aquarium in Mammoth City, the largest in the world.

From "Mr. Popper's Penguins" by Florence Atwater and Richard Atwater

Related Words

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