GREAT - 16 definitions found
great adj 1: relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind; "a great juicy steak"; "a great multitude"; "the great auk"; "a great old oak"; "a great ocean liner"; "a great delay" 2: of major significance or importance; "a great work of art"; "Einstein was one of the outstanding figures of the 20th centurey" [syn: great, outstanding] 3: remarkable or out of the ordinary in degree or magnitude or effect; "a great crisis"; "had a great stake in the outcome" 4: very good; "he did a bully job"; "a neat sports car"; "had a great time at the party"; "you look simply smashing" [syn: bang-up, bully, corking, cracking, dandy, great, groovy, keen, neat, nifty, not bad(p), peachy, slap-up, swell, smashing] 5: uppercase; "capital A"; "great A"; "many medieval manuscripts are in majuscule script" [syn: capital, great, majuscule] 6: in an advanced stage of pregnancy; "was big with child"; "was great with child" [syn: big(p), enceinte, expectant, gravid, great(p), large(p), heavy(p), with child(p)}] n 1: a person who has achieved distinction and honor in some field; "he is one of the greats of American music" great ɡreɪt See: THINK A GREAT DEAL OF. Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (2003) great I. adjective Etymology: Middle English grete, from Old English grēat; akin to Old High German grōz large Date: before 12th century 1. a. notably large in size ; huge b. of a kind characterized by relative largeness — used in plant and animal names c. elaborate, ample <great detail> 2. a. large in number or measure ; numerous <great multitudes> b. predominant <the great majority> 3. remarkable in magnitude, degree, or effectiveness <great bloodshed> 4. full of emotion <great with anger> 5. a. eminent, distinguished <a great poet> b. chief or preeminent over others — often used in titles <Lord Great Chamberlain> c. aristocratic, grand <great ladies> 6. long continued <a great while> 7. principal, main <a reception in the great hall> 8. more remote in a family relationship by a single generation than a specified relative <great-grandfather> 9. markedly superior in character or quality; especially noble <great of soul> 10. a. remarkably skilled <great at tennis> b. marked by enthusiasm ; keen <great on science fiction> 11. — used as a generalized term of approval <had a great time> <it was just great> • greatness noun II. adverb Date: 13th century in a great manner ; successfully, well <things are going great> III. noun (plural great or greats) Date: 13th century an outstandingly superior or skillful person <a tribute to the greats of baseball> Oxford English Reference Dictionary
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner\'s English Dictionary great (greater, greatest, greats) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. You use great to describe something that is very large. Great is more formal than big. The room had a great bay window. ...a great hall as long and high as a church. ADJ: ADJ n 2. Great means large in amount or degree. I'll take great care of it... Benjamin Britten did not live to a great age. ADJ 3. You use great to describe something that is important, famous, or exciting. ...the great cultural achievements of the past... America can be great again. ADJ • greatness A nation must take certain risks to achieve greatness. N-UNCOUNT 4. You can describe someone who is successful and famous for their actions, knowledge, or skill as great. Wes Hall was once one of the West Indies' great cricketers. ...the great George Padmore. ADJ: usu ADJ n • greatness Abraham Lincoln achieved greatness. N-UNCOUNT 5. The greats in a particular subject or field of activity are the people who have been most successful or famous in it. (JOURNALISM) ...all the greats of Hollywood. ...cycling's all-time greats. N-PLURAL: with supp 6. The greats of popular modern music are records that have been successful and that continue to be popular. (JOURNALISM) ...a medley of rock'n'roll greats. N-PLURAL 7. If you describe someone or something as great, you approve of them or admire them. (INFORMAL) Arturo has this great place in Cazadero... They're a great bunch of guys... I think she's great. ADJ [approval] 8. If you feel great, you feel very healthy, energetic, and enthusiastic. I feel just great. ADJ: feel ADJ 9. You use great in order to emphasize the size or degree of a characteristic or quality. ...a great big Italian wedding. ...her sense of colour and great eye for detail. ADJ [emphasis] 10. You say great in order to emphasize that you are pleased or enthusiastic about something. Oh great! That'll be good for Fergus. EXCLAM [feelings] 11. You say great in order to emphasize that you are angry or annoyed about something. 'Oh great,' I thought. 'Just what I need.' EXCLAM [feelings] 12. Great is used as part of the name of a species of plant or animal when there is another species of the same plant or animal which is smaller and has different characteristics. ...the great white shark. N-IN-NAMES see also greater English Explanatory Dictionary great ɡreɪt adj. & n. --adj. 1 a of a size, amount, extent, or intensity considerably above the normal or average; big (made a great hole; take great care; lived to a great age). b also with implied surprise, admiration, contempt, etc., esp. in exclamations (you great idiot!; great stuff!; look at that great wasp). c reinforcing other words denoting size, quantity, etc. (a great big hole; a great many). 2 important, pre-eminent; worthy or most worthy of consideration (the great thing is not to get caught). 3 grand, imposing (a great occasion; the great hall). 4 a (esp. of a public or historic figure) distinguished; prominent. b (the Great) as a title denoting the most important of the name (Alfred the Great). 5 a (of a person) remarkable in ability, character, achievement, etc. (great men; a great thinker). b (of a thing) outstanding of its kind (the Great Fire). 6 (foll. by at, on) competent, skilled, well-informed. 7 fully deserving the name of; doing a thing habitually or extensively (a great reader; a great believer in tolerance; not a great one for travelling). 8 (also greater) the larger of the name, species, etc. (great auk; greater celandine). 9 (Greater) (of a city etc.) including adjacent urban areas (Greater Manchester). 10 colloq. a very enjoyable or satisfactory; attractive, fine (had a great time; it would be great if we won). b (as an exclam.) fine, very good. 11 (in comb.) (in names of family relationships) denoting one degree further removed upwards or downwards (great-uncle; great-great-grandmother). --n. 1 a great or outstanding person or thing. 2 (in pl.) (Greats) colloq. (at Oxford University) an honours course or final examinations in classics and philosophy. øgreat and small all classes or types. the Great Bear see BEAR(2). Great Britain England, Wales, and Scotland. great circle see CIRCLE. Great Dane see DANE. great deal see DEAL(1). great-hearted magnanimous; having a noble or generous mind. great-heartedness magnanimity. the great majority by far the most. great northern diver a diving sea bird, Gavia immer, of the northern hemisphere. great organ the chief manual in a large organ, with its related pipes and mechanism. Great Russian n. a member or the language of the principal ethnic group in the USSR; Russian. --adj. of or relating to this people or language. great tit a Eurasian songbird, Parus major, with black and white head markings. great toe the big toe. Great War the world war of 1914-18. to a great extent largely. øøgreatness n. [OE great f. WG] Big Comprehensive Abbreviation Dictionary GREAT Big Comprehensive Abbreviation Dictionary great Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Mogul \Mo*gul"\, n. [From the Mongolian.] 1. A person of the Mongolian race. 2. (Railroad) A heavy locomotive for freight traffic, having three pairs of connected driving wheels and a two-wheeled truck. Great, or Grand, Mogul, the sovereign of the empire founded in Hindostan by the Mongols under Baber in the sixteenth century. Hence, a very important personage; a lord; -- sometimes only mogul. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Great \Great\, n. The whole; the gross; as, a contract to build a ship by the great. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) Great \Great\, a. [Compar. Greater; superl. Greatest.] [OE. gret, great, AS. gre['a]t; akin to OS. & LG. gr[=o]t, D. groot, OHG. gr[=o]z, G. gross. Cf. Groat the coin.] 1. Large in space; of much size; big; immense; enormous; expanded; -- opposed to small and little; as, a great house, ship, farm, plain, distance, length. 2. Large in number; numerous; as, a great company, multitude, series, etc. 3. Long continued; lengthened in duration; prolonged in time; as, a great while; a great interval. 4. Superior; admirable; commanding; -- applied to thoughts, actions, and feelings. 5. Endowed with extraordinary powers; uncommonly gifted; able to accomplish vast results; strong; powerful; mighty; noble; as, a great hero, scholar, genius, philosopher, etc. 6. Holding a chief position; elevated: lofty: eminent; distingushed; foremost; principal; as, great men; the great seal; the great marshal, etc. He doth object I am too great of birth. --Shak. 7. Entitled to earnest consideration; weighty; important; as, a great argument, truth, or principle. 8. Pregnant; big (with young). The ewes great with young. --Ps. lxxviii. 71. 9. More than ordinary in degree; very considerable in degree; as, to use great caution; to be in great pain. We have all Great cause to give great thanks. --Shak. 10. (Genealogy) Older, younger, or more remote, by single generation; -- often used before grand to indicate one degree more remote in the direct line of descent; as, great-grandfather (a grandfather's or a grandmother's father), great-grandson, etc. Great bear (Astron.), the constellation Ursa Major. Great cattle (Law), all manner of cattle except sheep and yearlings. --Wharton. Great charter (Eng. Hist.), Magna Charta. Great circle of a sphere, a circle the plane of which passes through the center of the sphere. Great circle sailing, the process or art of conducting a ship on a great circle of the globe or on the shortest arc between two places. Great go, the final examination for a degree at the University of Oxford, England; -- called also greats. --T. Hughes. Great guns. (Naut.) See under Gun. The Great Lakes the large fresh-water lakes (Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario) which lie on the northern borders of the United States. Great master. Same as Grand master, under Grand. Great organ (Mus.), the largest and loudest of the three parts of a grand organ (the others being the choir organ and the swell, and sometimes the pedal organ or foot keys), It is played upon by a separate keyboard, which has the middle position. The great powers (of Europe), in modern diplomacy, Great Britain, France, Germany, Austria, Russia, and Italy. Great primer. See under Type. Great scale (Mus.), the complete scale; -- employed to designate the entire series of musical sounds from lowest to highest. Great sea, the Mediterranean sea. In Chaucer both the Black and the Mediterranean seas are so called. Great seal. (a) The principal seal of a kingdom or state. (b) In Great Britain, the lord chancellor (who is custodian of this seal); also, his office. Soule\'s Dictionary of English Synonyms great I. a. 1. Large, big, vast, huge, bulky, ample, immense, gigantic, Herculean, Cyclopean, enormous. 2. Much, excessive, high. 3. Numerous, countless. 4. Considerable, important, weighty. 5. Distinguished, eminent, prominent, exalted, elevated, excellent, noted, illustrious, celebrated, famous, famed, renowned, far-famed. 6. Grand, august, dignified, noble, majestic, sublime, elevated, lofty, exalted. 7. Magnanimous, generous, chivalrous, highminded. 8. Sumptuous, rich, magnificent. 9. Hard, difficult, onerous, burdensome, grievous. 10. Chief, principal, main, leading, grand. 11. Superior, pre-eminent. II. n. [With The prefixed.] Great persons, persons of rank, people of distinction. English Explanatory Dictionary (Synonyms) great ɡreɪt adj. 1 big, large, huge, immense, enormous, gigantic, giant, grand, extensive, prodigious, colossal, massive, vast, tremendous; spacious, capacious, mammoth, gargantuan, monstrous, titanic, Cyclopean, Brobdingnagian: Europe was covered by a great forest. A great castle loomed before me. 2 large, huge, immense, enormous, gigantic, prodigious, vast, tremendous, abundant, countless: Plague killed a great number of people. 3 extreme, considerable, marked, pronounced, inordinate, extraordinary, significant; excess, excessive: I have something of great importance to tell you. Your news created great confusion. 4 critical, important, crucial, momentous, significant, serious, weighty, consequential: Those were great days for the history of England. 5 important, prominent, major, eminent, celebrated, distinguished, famous, famed, renowned, notable, noteworthy, illustrious, outstanding, well-known, weighty, influential, Rare eximious: What of the great universities, like Oxford and Cambridge? Our mayor thinks of himself as a great man. 6 talented, gifted, excellent, outstanding, exceptional, major, superlative, superior, leading, best, incomparable, matchless, peerless, skilful, artistic, brilliant, first-rate, remarkable, top, accomplished: Flaubert was one of the greatest writers of his age. Tamara is a good dancer, but not a great dancer. 7 lofty, elevated, exalted, noble, high-minded, grand: Great thoughts come from great minds. 8 talented, skilled, skilful, adroit, clever, adept, able, proficient, expert: Daphne is really great at playing bridge. 9 keen, zealous, eager, active, enthusiastic, devoted, ardent, passionate: Frank is a great stamp collector. 10 close, devoted, dedicated, fast, faithful, true, loyal, intimate, loving: Graham and Pembroke quickly became great friends. 11 terrible, bad, awful, unforgivable, horrendous, heinous, grievous, horrific, horrible, terrific, huge, colossal, enormous, gigantic, significant, cardinal, egregious, basic, profound, flagrant, glaring, arrant, consummate, out-and-out: Inviting her at the same time as her ex-husband was a great mistake. 12 spectacular, marvellous, outstanding, excellent, superb, grand, wonderful, fine Colloq fantastic, terrific, stupendous, marvy, smashing, fantabulous, Old-fashioned Brit tickety-boo: He says that we missed a truly great show. Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 414 Moby Thesaurus words for "great": Brobdingnagian, Cyclopean, Establishment, OK, VIP, able, absolute, abundant, accomplished, ace, ace-high, active, acute, adept, adroit, aggrandized, anticipating, apotheosized, arch, ardent, arrant, artistic, ascendant, authoritarian, authoritative, authorized, autocratic, awesome, awful, bad, bang-up, banner, baron, basic, beatified, best, big, big gun, big man, big name, big with child, big-laden, big-league, big-name, big-time, bighearted, bigwig, bigwigged, bonzer, boss, brass, brass hat, breeding, brilliant, bull, bully, bumper, but good, canonized, capacious, capital, cardinal, carrying, carrying a fetus, celebrated, celebrity, central, champion, chief, chivalrous, choir, claviature, clever, close, clothed with authority, colossal, commanding, competent, comprehensive, consequential, considerable, console, consummate, controlling, cool, corking, countless, crackerjack, critical, crowning, crucial, cutting, dandy, dedicated, deep, deified, delicious, devoted, dignitary, dignity, distinguished, dominant, double-barreled, drastic, ducky, duly constituted, eager, earthshaking, echo, egregious, eighty-eight, elder, elevated, eminent, empowered, ennobled, enormous, enshrined, enthroned, enthusiastic, ex officio, exalted, excellent, exceptional, excess, excessive, exhaustive, exorbitant, expecting, expert, extensive, extraordinary, extravagant, extreme, fab, faithful, famed, famous, fast, fat, father, fierce, figure, fine and dandy, fingerboard, first, first-rate, first-rater, flagrant, focal, foremost, full, furious, gargantuan, gear, generous, genius, gestating, giant, gifted, gigantic, glaring, glorified, good hand, goodly, governing, grand, grave, gravid, great man, great of heart, greathearted, grievous, groovy, handsome, headmost, healthy, hear, heavy, heavy with child, heavyweight, hegemonic, hegemonistic, heinous, held in awe, heroic, high, high and mighty, high-minded, high-powered, horrendous, horrible, horrific, hot, huge, hunky-dory, husky, idealistic, illustrious, immense, immoderate, immortal, immortalized, imperative, important, important person, incomparable, influential, inordinate, intemperate, intense, interests, intimate, irresistible, ivories, jam-up, just dandy, keen, keyboard, keys, knightly, knocked up, large, large-scale, largehearted, leading, liberal, lion, lofty, lords of creation, loving, loyal, magician, magisterial, magnanimous, magnate, magnified, mahatma, main, major, mammoth, man of genius, man of mark, man-sized, manual, marked, marvy, massive, master, master hand, mastermind, matchless, material, maximum, mean, mighty, mogul, momentous, monocratic, monstrous, nabob, name, neat, nifty, nobby, noble, noble-minded, notability, notable, noteworthy, numerous, official, okay, openhanded, organ manual, out of sight, out-and-out, outrageous, outstanding, overruling, panjandrum, paramount, parturient, passionate, past master, peachy, peachy-keen, pedals, peerless, person of renown, personage, personality, piano keys, piercing, pillar of society, plenary, potent, power, power elite, powerful, practiced hand, predominant, preeminent, preggers, pregnant, preponderant, prestigious, prevailing, primal, primary, prime, princely, principal, prodigious, prodigy, proficient, profound, prominent, pronounced, puissant, ranking, remarkable, renowned, rigorous, ripping, rough, ruling, ruling circle, rum, sachem, sage, sainted, sanctified, scrumptious, self-important, senior, serious, severe, sharp, shrined, significant, sizable, skilled, skilled hand, slap-up, smashing, solid, solo, somebody, something, something else, sovereign, spacious, spectacular, spiffing, spiffy, splitting, star, stellar, strong, stunning, stupendous, sublime, substantial, superb, supereminent, superfetate, superimpregnated, superior, superlative, superstar, supreme, surpassing, swell, talented, tall, teeming, terrible, terrific, the great, the top, throned, tidy, titanic, top, top brass, top people, topflight, topnotcher, total, totalitarian, tough, transcendent, tremendous, true, tycoon, unconscionable, unforgivable, vast, vehement, venomous, very important person, violent, virtuoso, virulent, weighty, well-known, whiz, with child, wizard, wonderful, world-shaking, worthy, zealous WHO WAS WHO 5000 B. C. to Date GREAT Peter the, shipbuilder, and the only ruler of Russia who never was bombarded. Was also unique in the fact that he worked. Historians claim this was due to his poor salary. |
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