vast

[vast]

adjective

vaster, vastest 

1. of very great area or extent; immense.

   the vast reaches of outer space.

   Synonyms: stupendous, colossal, gigantic, boundless, measureless
   Antonyms: small

2. of very great size or proportions; huge; enormous.

   vast piles of rubble left in the wake of the war.

3. very great in number, quantity, amount, etc..

   vast sums of money.

4. very great in degree, intensity, etc..

   an artisan of vast skill.

noun

1. Literary.,  an immense or boundless expanse or space.

vast

/ vɑːst /

adjective

1. unusually large in size, extent, degree, or number; immense

2. (prenominal) (intensifier)

   in vast haste

noun

1. poetic,  immense or boundless space

2. dialect,  a very great amount or number

Other Word Forms

• vastly adverb
• vastness noun
• supervast adjective
• vastity noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of vast¹

First recorded in 1565–75, from Latin vastus “empty, immense”

Word History and Origins

Origin of vast¹

C16: from Latin vastus deserted

Example Sentences

While the vast majority are found or return, up to 20 people each year are not located within 12 months.

Read more on BBC

Due to the sheer volume of public companies and proposals, institutional investors—who manage vast portfolios—have come to rely on proxy advisory firms as essential intermediaries.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“You have a vast strategic opportunity for the United States,” said Evan Ellis, a Latin America expert at the U.S.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“The vast majority of the world builds apartments this way. We are an outlier. It touches on the housing crisis, the affordability crisis.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Until recently, it remained unclear which of these two systems allows loggerhead hatchlings to determine where they are in the vast ocean, and the research team set out to investigate.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• ample 
• big 
• boundless 
• broad 
• colossal 
• endless 
• enormous 
• extensive 
• far-flung 
• far-reaching 
• gigantic 
• great 
• huge 
• immense 
• infinite 
• limitless 
• mammoth 
• massive 
• monumental 
• spacious