greatness

noun

great·​ness ˈgrāt-nəs 

: the quality or state of being great (as in size, skill, achievement, or power)

Today, many Inca buildings still stand—all witnesses to an empire of unforgettable greatness.

—Michelle Laliberte

An understanding of the visible world became a better way of understanding the greatness of God.

—Mario Salvadori

I came back convinced that bourbon and its cousins are America's contribution to world distillery, with as strong a claim to greatness as anything from Scotland, Ireland, or Canada.

—Corby Kummer

… young team that came within a game of reaching the World Series, a team on the verge of greatness.

—Barry Rozner

Tyson, 33, has long since abandoned any claim to boxing greatness, having squandered his promise in two jail sentences, a suspension and several gory defeats.

—Richard Hoffer

Synonyms

• choiceness
• distinction
• excellence
• excellency
• first-rateness
• perfection
• preeminence
• primeness
• superbness
• superiority
• supremacy

Examples of greatness in a Sentence

a poet whose work is of enduring greatness

the overwhelming greatness of the canyon is what visitors first notice

Recent Examples on the Web

Holding aloft every trophy on offer with the Reds—apart from the Europa League—the relentless number 11 has only occasionally gone off the boil, reliability that has ultimately resulted in greatness. —Henry Flynn, Forbes, 27 Nov. 2024

His greatness felt particularly significant on a night when the Ravens faced their two top running backs from the pre-Henry era. —Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 26 Nov. 2024

Finally, there’s Andy Reid, whose greatness is taken for granted. —Zak Keefer, The Athletic, 25 Nov. 2024

What the 37-year-old rapper is pissed about is that this billboard-sized monument to his greatness was defaced. —Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 24 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing greatness

• the stuff of greatness