powerful
Americanadjective
-
having or exerting great power or force.
- Antonyms:
- weak
-
physically strong, as a person.
a large, powerful athlete.
-
producing great physical effects, as a machine or a blow.
-
potent; efficacious.
a powerful drug.
-
having great effectiveness, as a speech, speaker, description, reason, etc.
- Synonyms:
- effective, cogent, forcible, convincing, influential
-
having great power, authority, or influence; mighty.
a powerful nation.
-
Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. great in number or amount.
a powerful lot of money.
adjective
-
having great power, force, potency, or effect
-
extremely effective or efficient in action
a powerful drug
a powerful lens
-
dialect large or great
a powerful amount of trouble
adverb
Related Words
Powerful, mighty, potent suggest great force or strength. Powerful suggests capability of exerting great force or overcoming strong resistance: a powerful machine like a bulldozer. Mighty, now chiefly rhetorical, implies uncommon or overwhelming strength of power: a mighty army. Potent implies great natural or inherent power: a potent influence.
Other Word Forms
- overpowerful adjective
- overpowerfully adverb
- overpowerfulness noun
- powerfully adverb
- powerfulness noun
- quasi-powerful adjective
- quasi-powerfully adverb
- superpowerful adjective
- ultrapowerful adjective
- unpowerful adjective
Etymology
Origin of powerful
First recorded in 1350–1400, powerful is from the Middle English word powarfull. See power, -ful
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Starting in January 2025, Nokia’s sensors had picked up a series of increasingly powerful cyberattacks coming from devices that hadn’t previously been considered dangerous.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
“It represents something very strong, very powerful, in terms of law and order,” Trump told reporters last year.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
Augustin Ancel, from Paris, said the pope carrying the cross was "a powerful message".
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
“The 2027 Budget upholds this promise and would ensure that the United States continues to maintain the world’s most powerful and capable military.”
From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026
A powerful wag of the wolf’s great furry tail pushed aside the drapes, and the cool blue light of the first full moon of May shone brightly upon them all.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
