The word "gigantic" is spelled with a hard "g" at the beginning, followed by the long "i" sound, and the soft "g" sound. The stress in the word is on the second syllable. In IPA phonetic transcription, it would be written as /dʒaɪˈɡæntɪk/. The word means extremely large or massive, and is often used to describe things like buildings, animals, or even ideas. Its etymology comes from the Greek word "gigas" or "gigantes," meaning "giant."
Gigantic is an adjective that describes something as extremely large, immense, or colossal in size. It denotes an object, living being, or concept that surpasses or greatly exceeds the norm in terms of magnitude or scale.
Used to depict physical size, gigantic portrays something that is massive, immense, or monumental in dimensions. It implies a significant increase in size compared to what is typically expected or seen. For example, a gigantic elephant would refer to one that is exceptionally huge or an enormous building might be referred to as gigantic.
Moreover, the term can also be applied figuratively to describe concepts, events, or ideas that are extraordinarily significant or momentous. In this sense, it implies something of exceptional importance or impact that surpasses the ordinary, such as a gigantic breakthrough in scientific research or a gigantic achievement in the world of sports.
The connotation of gigantic often evokes a sense of awe, astonishment, or wonder due to the sheer enormity or scale of the subject. Synonyms of gigantic include enormous, colossal, mammoth, massive, monstrous, and huge.
Overall, gigantic emphasizes the idea of immense size, whether referring to a physical object or representing the significance and impact of an abstract concept. It captures the attention and admiration of individuals by highlighting an exceptional or extraordinary attribute.
Very large; huge; of extraordinary size; enormous.
Etymological and pronouncing dictionary of the English language. By Stormonth, James, Phelp, P. H. Published 1874.
* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.
The word "gigantic" originated from the Greek word "gigas", meaning "giant". In ancient Greek mythology, the Gigantes were a race of massive and rebellious beings who battled the gods. The word "gigas" eventually made its way into Latin as "giganticus", and then entered English in the 17th century.