gargantuan

UK: ɡɑːˈɡæntʃuən | US: ɡɑːrˈɡæntʃuən

Definition

  1. adj. of immense size or volume; gigantic

  2. adj. extraordinarily large or exaggerated

Structure
gargantua <n (name of a giant in literature)>an <adjective suffix>
Etymology

The word "gargantuan" originates from Gargantua, the name of a voracious giant in François Rabelais' 16th-century satirical novels. The character embodied exaggerated size and appetite, leading to the adjective's modern meaning of "enormous." The suffix -an standardizes it as an adjective. The term reflects a playful, literary evolution from a proper noun to a descriptor of colossal scale.

Examples

  1. The team faced a gargantuan task of cleaning up after the hurricane.

  2. She ordered a gargantuan pizza that barely fit through the door.

  3. The project required a gargantuan amount of funding.

  4. His gargantuan appetite surprised everyone at the buffet.

  5. The skyscraper's gargantuan shadow stretched across the city.