- present participle of tower.
towering
Americanadjective
-
very high or tall; lofty.
a towering oak.
- Synonyms:
- elevated
- Antonyms:
- short
-
surpassing others; very great.
a towering figure in American poetry.
-
rising to an extreme degree of violence or intensity.
a towering rage.
-
beyond the proper or usual limits; inordinate; excessive.
towering pride; towering ambitions.
adjective
-
very tall; lofty
-
outstanding, as in importance or stature
-
(prenominal) very intense
a towering rage
Synonym Usage
See high.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of towering
From a late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at tower 1, -ing 2
Explanation
Towering things are extremely tall, like the towering skyscrapers in New York City or the towering redwoods in northern California. Use the adjective towering to describe gigantic things that loom over everything (or everyone) else. There's the towering basketball player in your yoga class who is at least a foot taller than the other students, and the towering addition your neighbor is building on his house — the one that will block your view of the lake. The verb tower means "to rise high," from the Latin for "tower," turris.
Vocabulary lists containing towering
Living Large: Synonyms for "Big"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Unit 4: Powerful Openings
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
"The Lotus Seed"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Yet his towering presence has choked off potential heirs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
But when she left Cambridge in 2001, she donated her famous kitchen — pegboard walls, towering countertops and all — to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, where it remains on display.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2026
“Hidden behind towering privacy hedges in Encino’s famed “Rancho Estates,” this multi-structure tennis court compound delivers the ultimate sanctuary where high-end luxury seamlessly meets practical family livability,” the listing describes.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
As a fleet-footed forward, Floyd could not be more of a different player to his dad Christopher, who was a no-nonsense towering centre-back.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
Ahead of them, he could see towering cabinets full of interconnected wires and cables and silicon chips—what he thought of generically as computer stuff.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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.
