colossus

noun

co·​los·​sus kə-ˈlä-səs 

plural colossi kə-ˈlä-ˌsī 

1

: a statue of gigantic size and proportions

2

: a person or thing of immense size or power

Did you know?

The original colossi (notice the plural form) were the larger-than-life statues made by the Greeks and Romans. The most famous of these was the Colossus of Rhodes, a statue of the sun god Helios built on the Greek island of Rhodes around 280 B.C. that was over 100 feet tall and took more than 12 years to build. The Statue of Liberty is a modern colossus, enormous and stately, at the entrance to New York Harbor. And someone who has played a colossal role in history, such as Winston Churchill, may be called a colossus as well.

Synonyms of colossus

• giant
• whale
• monster
• dinosaur
• mammoth
• titan

Examples of colossus in a Sentence

The building is a colossus of steel and glass.

Leonardo da Vinci remains a colossus in the history of art.

Recent Examples on the Web

The pope, at this very moment, is having the fallen part of the Colosseum rebuilt; half a dozen mason’s apprentices, without any scaffolding, are righting the colossus on whose shoulders a nation, transformed into slave laborers, perished. —Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026

One wonders how many of the Mecum audience this year had family members keeping themselves entertained at the adjacent entertainment colossus. —New Atlas, 23 Jan. 2026

And, to emphasize the point, Vespasian also ordered that the head of Nero’s colossus be replaced—with, some believe, his own likeness. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026

Last month, the Warner board spurned the Ellisons’ and Paramount’s offer and agreed to sell its movie-and-TV studio and the HBO Max service to Netflix, creating a potential streaming colossus. —Reeves Wiedeman, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin, from Greek kolossos

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for colossus

• proboscis

Kids Definition

colossus

noun

co·​los·​sus kə-ˈläs-əs 

plural colossi -ˈläs-ˌī 

1

: a huge statue

2

: a person or thing of great size or power

Etymology

from Latin colossus "huge statue, colossus"