Stupendous
adj.joyful, energeticplayful
What it means
So impressive in scale, quality, or achievement that it inspires amazement.
Reach for it when using exuberant praise for something genuinely extraordinary
Volunteers completed a stupendous restoration of the storm-damaged theater.
Choose between these
6- playful
when exceptional success merits contemporary enthusiasm
not when Phenomenal is frequently inflated in promotional language.
- everyday
when very great scale or excellence deserves emphatic praise
not when Tremendous is more common and can describe harmful force.
- warm
when surprise at the result is central
not when Astonishing can introduce terrible news as easily as praise.
- professional
when the result clearly lies outside ordinary experience
not when Extraordinary states rarity without necessarily praising it.
- formal
when grandeur and beauty lead the admiration
not when Magnificent is statelier and less playful.
- literary
when enormous scale or lasting importance is factual
not when Monumental is too heavy for a delightful small performance.
Said against
3- puny
- mediocre
- underwhelming
It naturally appears in
3- stupendous achievement
The new flood barrier was a stupendous achievement of regional cooperation.
- stupendous effort
A stupendous effort returned every displaced family home before winter.
- absolutely stupendous
The children's hand-built planetarium looked absolutely stupendous.
Where this comes from
- wiktionary, English adjective, extremely impressive sense opens in a new tab · retrieved 2026-07-26
The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.