vast

[ vast, vahst ]

/ væst, vɑst /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR vast ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, vast·er, vast·est.

of very great area or extent; immense: the vast reaches of outer space.

of very great size or proportions; huge; enormous: vast piles of rubble left in the wake of the war.

very great in number, quantity, amount, etc.: vast sums of money.

very great in degree, intensity, etc.: an artisan of vast skill.

noun

Literary. an immense or boundless expanse or space.

Nearby words

vassalage, vassalic, vassalize, vassar, vassar, matthew, vast, vasthi, vastitude, vastity, vastly, vastus

Origin of vast

First recorded in 1565–75, vast is from the Latin word vastus empty, immense

SYNONYMS FOR vast

1 measureless, boundless, gigantic, colossal, stupendous.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR vast ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR vast

1 small.

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Related forms

vast·ly, adverbvast·ness, nounsu·per·vast, adjectivesu·per·vast·ly, adverb

su·per·vast·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for vastly

The two carriers are headquartered in Kuala Lumpur but have vastly different profiles and operating philosophies.
The Presumed Crash of AirAsia Flight QZ8501 Is Nothing Like MH370|Lennox Samuels|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Our time is so vastly different in its particulars that the parallels work only in broad strokes.
American Democracy Under Threat for 250 Years|Jedediah Purdy|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To prevent further attacks we have vastly improved our defenses at home.
Why’s Al Qaeda So Strong? Washington Has (Literally) No idea|Bruce Riedel|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In terms of options, the cultural world of 1974 was vastly better than that of 1954.
This One Picture of Telly Savalas Refutes All Fears That Progress Has Ended|Nick Gillespie|October 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

These numbers, although startling, are thought to “vastly underestimate” the reality.
CDC Director: First U.S. Ebola Patient ‘Critically Ill’|Abby Haglage|September 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The known world of the twelfth century is a very much smaller world than ours, and it is a world of a vastly greater unity.
The Unity of Civilization|Various
She was very happy on her return journey to New York,—in vastly different mood than the one of nine weeks before.
Jane Journeys On|Ruth Comfort Mitchell
The sound was clear, sharp, and metallic, and vastly higher in pitch than a ship's call.
The Man Who Rocked the Earth|Arthur Train
This being the force, and such the weapons, with which we marched against and defeated the vastly superior army of Narvaez.
A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. IV.|Robert Kerr
And it's vastly more irksome to give up one's own way, than to hear a few impertinent remarks.
Camilla|Fanny Burney

British Dictionary definitions for vastly

vast

/ (vɑːst) /

adjective

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

(prenominal) (intensifier)in vast haste

noun

the vast mainly poetic immense or boundless space

British dialect a very great amount or number

Derived Formsvastity, nounvastly, adverbvastness, noun

Word Origin for vast

C16: from Latin vastus deserted

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for vastly

vast

adj.

1570s, from Middle French vaste, from Latin vastus "immense, extensive, huge," also "desolate, unoccupied, empty." The two meanings probably originally attached to two separate words, one with a long -a- one with a short -a-, that merged in early Latin (see waste). Very popular early 18c. as an intensifier. Related: Vastly; vastness.

vast

adjective, vast·er, vast·est.

noun

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Nearby words

Origin of vast

Examples from the Web for vastly

British Dictionary definitions for vastly

vast

adjective

noun

Word Origin for vast

Word Origin and History for vastly

vast