stupendous

adjective

stu·​pen·​dous stu̇-ˈpen-dəs 

styu̇-

1

: causing astonishment or wonder : awesome, marvelous

2

: of amazing size or greatness : tremendous

stupendously adverb

stupendousness noun

Synonyms

• amazing
• astonishing
• astounding
• awesome
• awful
• eye-opening
• fabulous
• marvelous
• marvellous
• miraculous
• portentous
• prodigious
• staggering
• stunning
• sublime
• surprising
• wonderful
• wondrous

Choose the Right Synonym for stupendous

monstrous, prodigious, tremendous, stupendous mean extremely impressive.

monstrous implies a departure from the normal (as in size, form, or character) and often carries suggestions of deformity, ugliness, or fabulousness.

the monstrous waste of the project

prodigious suggests a marvelousness exceeding belief, usually in something felt as going far beyond a previous maximum (as of goodness, greatness, intensity, or size).

made a prodigious effort and rolled the stone aside

tremendous may imply a power to terrify or inspire awe.

the tremendous roar of the cataract

stupendous implies a power to stun or astound, usually because of size, numbers, complexity, or greatness beyond description.

a stupendous volcanic eruption

Examples of stupendous in a Sentence

a person with stupendous wealth

the stupendous engineering feats achieved by the ancient Romans

Recent Examples on the Web

After that came Carr’s stupendous biography Fire in the Belly in 2012, a retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 2018, and a steady stream of scholarly projects. —Jackson Davidow, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019

Reese had a stupendous rookie season this year as a part of the Chicago Sky. —Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 18 Oct. 2024

For less than the stupendous cost of colonizing Mars, humanity could address the issues that Musk feels will make the Earth uninhabitable, such as global warming. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2024

In addition to being a properly funny, pleasingly irreverent comedy featuring stupendous turns from two of the best actors working today, Wicked Little Letters is also a tense mystery. —EW.com, 14 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin stupendus, gerundive of stupēre

First Known Use

1618, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

stupendous

adjective

stu·​pen·​dous st(y)u̇-ˈpen-dəs 

: amazing especially because of great size or height

stupendous gorges

stupendously adverb

stupendousness noun