English Explanatory Dictionary

awesome

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Causing awe or terror; inspiring wonder or excitement.
  2. Excellent, exciting, remarkable.
noun
  1. Clipping of awesomeness (“the quality, state, or essence of being awesome”).
  2. A person who is awesome.

Pronunciation

/ˈɔː.səm/ /ˈɔ.səm/ /ˈɑ.səm/ en-us-awesome.ogg

Word forms

awesome more awesome awesomer most awesome awesomest orsum

Etymology

From awe + -some; compare earlier awful and Middle English eiful (“inducing fright or terror, terrible”), from Old English eġeful (“fearful; inspiring awe”). The oldest meaning of awesome is of “something which inspires awe”, but the word is now also a common colloquial expression. It was originally so used in the United States, where it had featured strikingly in the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora!, as used by Japan's Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto to describe the "awesome" industrial potential of the United States. Consequently, as the word popularly became an expression for anything superb, in its original meaning it has tended to be replaced by the related word, awe-inspiring.

Synonyms

amazing astounding awe-inspiring awesome awful sensational awesomesauce based beatific bewildering blissful celestial cool delightful divine dope enchanting excellent extraordinary far out fire heavenlike heavenly hellagood impressive incredible inspiring goshwow glorious gnarly goated grand grandiose great groovy magnificent major majestic marvellous mystifying mythic neat lit outstanding phenomenal powerful rad righteous selcouth splendent stupendous stupefying sublime surpassing terrific tight unbelievable unreal wicked wonderful

Antonyms

horrible horrific terrible mediocre aweless fail shit weaksauce

Related words

awe-inspiring awful surprising

Derived words

awesomazing awesomely awesomeness awesomenessness awesomeosity awesome sauce awesometastic awesomitude gnarlsome unawesome
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