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• massive
  massive

  adjective

  consisting of or forming a large mass; bulky and heavy.
• Massive
  Massive

  noun

  Mount, a mountain in central Colorado, in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains: second highest in U.S. Rockies. 14,421 feet (4,396 meters).

massive

¹ American  

[mas-iv] / ˈmæs ɪv /

adjective

1. 

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

   massive columns.

2. large and heavy-looking.

   a massive forehead.

3. large in scale, amount, or degree.

   a massive breakdown in communications;

   massive reductions in spending.

4. solid or substantial; great or imposing.

   massive erudition.

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

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Massive ² American  

[mas-iv] / ˈmæs ɪv /

noun

1. Mount, a mountain in central Colorado, in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains: second highest in U.S. Rockies. 14,421 feet (4,396 meters).

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massive British  

/ ˈmæsɪv /

adjective

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

2. impressive or imposing in quality, degree, or scope

   massive grief

3. relatively intensive or large; considerable

   a massive dose

4. pathol affecting a large area of the body

   a massive cancer

5. geology

   1. (of igneous rocks) having no stratification, cleavage, etc; homogeneous

   2. (of sedimentary rocks) arranged in thick poorly defined strata

6. mineralogy without obvious crystalline structure

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noun

1. slang a group of friends or associates; gang

   the Staines massive

Other Word Forms

• massiveness
  noun
• massivity
  noun
• massively
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of massive

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English ( see mass, -ive); replacing Middle English massif, from Middle French

Explanation

Massive means enormous. Obviously, Mt. Everest is massive, but a massive budget cut isn't necessarily big in physical mass; it's something that is imposing in scale or power. A massive budget cut can do a lot of damage. Unless someone is referring to your intellect, massive is not a word you want used in a description of your attributes. Massive is a nice one to trot out when huge, gigantic, and enormous sound too over-the-top. Politicians use it often. Massive could also be the best way to describe the wave you surfed on your Hawaiian vacation or the size of the fish you nearly caught on that trip with your friends.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

massive Massive

Many made massive bets on popular tech names such as Tesla, Alphabet or Palantir—and, as the artificial-intelligence rally blew past record after record, got richer than they ever imagined.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

But since the massive stimulus spending during the Covid pandemic, officials have failed to reduce the resulting debt pile amid anaemic economic growth.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

In the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, where California’s biggest rivers meet, the state’s massive pumps send water flowing into canals to about 27 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

Perhaps most fittingly for its Grammy-winning new owner, the barn boasts a massive recording studio, allowing Bryan to work on new music just steps from his home.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026

The massive iron gates swung in; we marched between them.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

"Massive stars at low metallicity are particularly important for building accurate models of early galaxies," Telford said.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 24, 2026

Massive teams of engineers and scientists — including personnel from Caltech and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory — have worked for over a decade to develop the $4.3-billion telescope.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026

Massive flooding killed eight people in Nepal on Wednesday as Chinese state media reported "major casualties" from a mudslide at a Tibet trade hub on China's side of the nations' shared border.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

Tunstall was keen that the music – which she describes as Massive Attack meets Hozier - be more than BSL-signed singing.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Massive Douglas firs and cedars grew in the misty hills outside town.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

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