massive

[mas-iv]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR massive ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

consisting of or forming a large mass; bulky and heavy: massive columns.

large and heavy-looking: a massive forehead.

large in scale, amount, or degree: a massive breakdown in communications; massive reductions in spending.

solid or substantial; great or imposing: massive erudition.

Mineralogy. having no outward crystal form, although sometimes crystalline in internal structure.

Origin of massive

1375–1425; late Middle English (see mass, -ive); replacing Middle English massif < Middle French

Related formsmas·sive·ly, adverbmas·sive·ness, mas·siv·i·ty, noun

Massive

[mas-iv]

noun

Mount, a mountain in central Colorado, in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains: second highest in U.S. Rockies. 14,421 feet (4396 meters).

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

Related Words for massive

heavy, huge, enormous, imposing, colossal, big, grand, great, immense, monumental, substantial, mammoth, gargantuan, impressive, hefty, towering, extensive, gigantic, vast, tremendous

Examples from the Web for massive

Contemporary Examples of massive

But the F-35 has been plagued with massive delays and cost overruns—mostly due to design defects and software issues.
New U.S. Stealth Jet Can’t Fire Its Gun Until 2019
Dave Majumdar
December 31, 2014
This “Sixth Migration” of massive human migration to Texas is the larger story of the book, and it is a significant story.
Will Texas Stay Texan?
David Fontana
December 29, 2014
It is very popular in Southeast Asia and has had massive growth.
The Presumed Crash of AirAsia Flight QZ8501 Is Nothing Like MH370
Lennox Samuels
December 29, 2014
“I am being proven right about massive vaccinations” he tweeted in September.
2014: Revenge of the Creationists
Karl W. Giberson
December 27, 2014
What you see is a massive, well-intentioned, legal junk pile.
Red Tape Is Strangling Good Samaritans
Philip K. Howard
December 27, 2014

Historical Examples of massive

Hence, our architecture and statuary is massive and of immense proportions.
Philothea
Lydia Maria Child
What storming of fortresses, built all of massive snowblocks!
Snow Flakes (From "Twice Told Tales")
Nathaniel Hawthorne
He was altogether splendid, massive, overpowering, and impracticable.
Little Dorrit
Charles Dickens
The walls of Norman buildings are thick and massive, and are often faced with cut stone.
English Villages
P. H. Ditchfield
The bull-dog stood too short, while its massive jaws were an added protection.
White Fang
Jack London

British Dictionary definitions for massive

massive

adjective

(of objects) large in mass; bulky, heavy, and usually solid

impressive or imposing in quality, degree, or scopemassive grief

relatively intensive or large; considerablea massive dose

pathol affecting a large area of the bodya massive cancer

geology

(of igneous rocks) having no stratification, cleavage, etc; homogeneous
(of sedimentary rocks) arranged in thick poorly defined strata

mineralogy without obvious crystalline structure

noun

slang a group of friends or associates; gangthe Staines massive

Derived Formsmassively, adverbmassiveness, noun

Word Origin for massive

C15: from French massif, from masse mass

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 massive

adj.

c.1400, from Middle French massif "bulky, solid," from Old French masse "lump" (see mass (n.1)). Related: Massively; massiveness. U.S. Cold War strategy of massive retaliation was introduced by J.F. Dulles in early 1954.

massive in Medicine

massive

[măs′ĭv]

adj.

Large in comparison with the usual amount.

Affecting a large area of bodily tissue; widespread and severe.