huge
Americanadjective
-
extraordinarily large in bulk, quantity, or extent.
a huge ship; a huge portion of ice cream.
- Antonyms:
- diminutive, tiny, small
-
of unbounded extent, scope, or character; limitless.
the huge genius of Mozart.
-
Slang. very important, successful, popular, etc..
The show is huge in Britain.
adjective
Pronunciation
See human.
Synonym Usage
Huge, enormous, immense, tremendous imply great magnitude. Huge implies massiveness, bulkiness, or even shapelessness: a huge mass of rock; a huge collection of antiques. Enormous, literally out of the norm, applies to what exceeds in extent, magnitude, or degree, a norm or standard: an enormous iceberg. Tremendous, in informal use, applies to anything so huge as to be astonishing or to inspire awe: a tremendous amount of equipment. Immense, literally not measurable, is particularly applicable to what is exceedingly great, without reference to a standard: immense buildings. All are used figuratively: a huge success; enormous curiosity; tremendous effort; immense joy.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of huge
First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English huge, hoge from Old French ahuge, ahoge “enormous,” equivalent to a- a- 5 + hoge “height” from Germanic; compare Old Norse haugr “hill” ( see high)
Explanation
Use the adjective huge to describe something that’s really, really big. When your friend throws a huge birthday party and invites everyone she knows, you can finally talk to that cute neighbor you have a huge crush on. Huge is a relative word — there’s no specific degree or size something has to reach before you can say it’s huge. You can eat a huge piece of cake, or go see huge elephants in the zoo. Cake and elephants are both concrete things, but huge can also describe things that aren’t actual objects. For example, you can make a huge difference by volunteering at an animal shelter.
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.
See Examples For:
In 1947, after reports of strong odors were reported, a huge crowd on the street watched as police and city officials pried their way inside to look for the brothers’ bodies.
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
It has an infrared sauna and a huge hot tub that can fit up to like 20 people.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
The shortages have forced Russia to import gasoline for the first time in years, while drivers have been stuck waiting for hours in huge lines at gas stations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
When ejected, it forms a huge, reflective cloud in which each individual fiber reflects a radio frequency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
“Did she give you lessons at a huge discount?”
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
But "it could have been huger" if not for tech industry interference.
From Salon ● Feb. 8, 2023
But the huger dimensions work against the gains in fuel efficiency.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 24, 2021
“But he talked about one bigger and huger than hers. We take him at his word that he’s going to pursue it. We’ll be supportive in any way we can.”
From Washington Post ● Nov. 11, 2016
Mr. Dudamel kept a firm grip on the sprawling work in two movements: huge and huger.
From New York Times ● Feb. 19, 2012
There was something else, something coming toward her, something deeper and huger that she didn’t want to know.
From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich
Oh my God, I’m like the hugest, hugest!
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 29, 2023
“Which, if you have met James, is not the hugest loss,” Jennings says, as the audience cracks up at the unexpected burn from the mild-mannered trivia king.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 31, 2022
We'll happily shout it from the rooftops: We're the hugest fans of chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author Yotam Ottolenghi.
From Salon ● Mar. 16, 2022
“The advice I would give is always to remain grateful even if you are having the hugest success, because it can all be taken away from you in a split second,” Andreescu said.
From New York Times ● Oct. 7, 2021
Outwardly, I had carefully cultivated my status as the funny, nonthreatening guy, but secretly I had the hugest crush on Zaheera.
From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah
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.
