heavy

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adjective

Definition of HEAVY

1

having great weight <this trunk full of books is much too heavy for one person to lift>

Synonyms hefty, massive, ponderous, weighty

Related Words burdensome, leaden, lumpish; bulky, elephantine, massy, outsize (also outsized), voluminous; overweight, top-heavy; solid, substantial; ultraheavy

Near Antonyms airy, ethereal, feathery, fluffy, gossamer, gossamery; flimsy, insubstantial, slight; lightweight, undersized (also undersize), underweight; ultralight, ultralightweight

Antonyms light, weightless

2

causing weariness, restlessness, or lack of interest <the study of history doesn't have to be all about dull heavy reading and the memorization of dates>

Synonyms arid, colorless, drab, dreary, drudging, dry, dull, dusty, flat, heavy, ho-hum, humdrum, jading, jejune, leaden, mind-numbing, monochromatic, monotonous, numbing, old, pedestrian, ponderous, slow, stale, stodgy, stuffy, stupid, tame, tedious, tiresome, tiring, uninteresting, wearisome, weary, wearying

Related Words aseptic, barren, blah, dullish, pleasureless, prosaic, prosy, soggy, spiritless; blank, earthbound, gray (also grey), inanimate, pallid, pedantic, sterile, suspenseless, undramatic, uneventful, unexciting, unimaginative, uninspiring, unnewsworthy, unrewarding, unsensational, unspectacular; annoying, bothersome, irksome, irritating; longsome; palling; draining, enervating, exhausting, fatiguing, wearing; debilitating, enfeebling; demoralizing, discouraging, disheartening, dispiriting; common, commonplace, ordinary, tepid, unexceptional, unsurprising, vapid; cumbersome, lumbering, plodding, poky (or pokey)

Near Antonyms amazing, astonishing, astounding, awesome, eye-opening, fabulous, marvelous (or marvellous), sensational, spectacular, surprising, wonderful, wondrous; animating, breathtaking, electrifying, energizing, enlivening, exciting, exhilarating, galvanizing, hair-raising, inspiring, invigorating, rip-roaring, rousing, stimulating, stirring, thrilling; amusing, diverting, entertaining; moving, poignant, touching; alluring, attracting, attractive, beguiling, bewitching, captivating, charming, enchanting, enthralling, entrancing, fascinating; mesmerizing, spellbinding; suspenseful; arresting, provocative, tantalizing

Antonyms absorbing, engaging, engrossing, gripping, interesting, intriguing, involving, riveting

3

containing much seasoning, fat, or sugar <avoid heavy desserts like cheesecake and pecan pie>

Synonyms heavy

Related Words buttery, fat, fatty, greasy, oily; caloric, calorific, fattening; cloying, oversweet; filling, overfilling, satiating, sating; spicy, sugary, sweet; creamy, sauced

Near Antonyms natural, plain, simple; unseasoned; diet, nonfattening, slimming; nonfat

Antonyms light, lite

4

covered over by clouds <heavy skies threatening rain>

Synonyms beclouded, clouded, cloudy, dull, hazed, hazy, heavy, lowering (also louring), overclouded

Related Words bedimmed, befogged, blackened, darkened, darksome, dim, dimmed, dulled, dusky, misty, murky, obscure, obscured, overshadowed; sunless; black, bleak, cheerless, dark, desolate, dismal, drear, dreary, funereal, gloomy, glum, gray (also grey), sepulchral, somber (or sombre), sullen

Near Antonyms sunlit, sunny, sunshiny; brightened, brilliant, dazzling, illuminated, illumined, lit (or lighted), lightened, radiant, shiny

Antonyms clear, cloudless

5

difficult to endure <ignoring common sense, she drank the parasite-infested pond water and paid a heavy penalty for it>

Synonyms bitter, brutal, burdensome, cruel, excruciating, grievous, grim, hard, hardhanded, heavy, inhuman, murderous, onerous, oppressive, rough, rugged, searing, severe, stiff, tough, trying

Related Words austere, bleak, comfortless, discomforting, forbidding, inhospitable, spartan, uncomfortable; biting, inclement, intemperate, wild; rigorous, strict, stringent; agonizing, heartbreaking, heartrending, painful, wretched; crushing, grinding, overwhelming, wearing; insufferable, insupportable, intolerable, unbearable, unendurable; harrowing, tortuous; bad, disagreeable, hostile, unfriendly, unpleasant

Near Antonyms comfortable, cozy, luxurious, snug; agreeable, friendly, genial, hospitable, pleasant; peaceful, relaxing, reposeful, restful; bearable, endurable, painless, tolerable; balmy, calm, clement, gentle, mild, moderate, temperate

Antonyms easy, light, soft

6

extreme in degree, power, or effect <heavy rains> <the heavy fighting has just begun, so there are no casualties to report>

Synonyms acute, almighty, blistering, deep, dreadful, excruciating, explosive, exquisite, fearful, fearsome, ferocious, fierce, frightful, furious, ghastly, hard, heavy, heavy-duty, hellacious, intensive, keen, profound, terrible, vehement, vicious, violent

Related Words accentuated, aggravated, concentrated, deepened; emphasized, enhanced, heightened, intensified, magnified; stressed; exhaustive, thorough; harsh, rigorous, severe

Near Antonyms feeble, weak; shallow, superficial; moderated, qualified; alleviated, eased, lightened, toned (down); abated, decreased, diminished, lessened, reduced, subdued

Antonyms light, moderate, soft

7

having a matter of importance as its topic <got into a heavy discussion about death and the afterlife>

Synonyms grave, heavy, weighty

Related Words big, consequential, eventful, important, major, material, meaningful, momentous, portentous, significant, solid, substantial

Near Antonyms frivolous, insignificant, lite, little, Mickey Mouse, minor, silly, slight, small, trivial, unimportant

Antonyms light, unserious

8

requiring considerable physical or mental effort <until we find our groove, it's going to be heavy sledding on this project>

Synonyms arduous, Augean, backbreaking, challenging, demanding, difficult, effortful, exacting, formidable, grueling (or gruelling), heavy, hellacious, herculean, killer, laborious, moiling, murderous, pick-and-shovel, rigorous, rough, rugged, severe, stiff, strenuous, sweaty, tall, testing, toilsome, tough, uphill

Related Words abstract, abstruse, complex, complicated, elusive, hairy, insoluble, intricate, involved, knotty, opaque, problematic (also problematical), recondite, serious, spiny, stubborn, thorny, ticklish, tricky; bruising, burdensome, exhausting, labored, onerous, oppressive, stressful, taxing, tight, trying; annoying, bothersome, distressing, irksome, troublesome, vexatious; grievous, grim, strict, stringent; brutal, cruel, inhuman, painful

Near Antonyms achievable, clear, doable, elementary, manageable, uncomplicated; comforting, gentle, painless, relaxed, smooth, soothing; accessible, friendly, idiotproof, user-friendly

Antonyms cheap, easy, effortless, facile, light, mindless, simple, soft, undemanding

9

having great power or influence <she's not among the handful of heavy critics who can make or break a Broadway show>

Synonyms heavy, heavy-duty, influential, mighty, potent, powerful, puissant, significant, strong

Related Words high-level, senior, top; able, capable, competent, effective, efficient; authoritarian, autocratic (also autocratical), despotic, dictatorial, magisterial, tyrannical (also tyrannic); celebrated, distinguished, dominant, eminent, famed, famous, great, illustrious, noble, notable, noteworthy, notorious, outstanding, preeminent, prestigious, prominent, renowned; dynamic, energetic, forceful, high-powered, robust, vigorous

Near Antonyms feeble, flimsy, frail, infirm; anonymous, nameless, obscure, uncelebrated, unknown; incapable, incompetent, ineffective, inept, inexpert, unfit, unqualified, unskilled, unskillful

Antonyms helpless, impotent, insignificant, little, powerless, unimportant, weak

10

containing unborn young within the body <the heifer was heavy with young and soon would be birthing>

Synonyms big, caught, enceinte, expectant, expecting, gone, gravid, heavy, quick [archaic]

Related Words parturient, prenatal; childbearing, gestational; brooding; conceiving, impregnated

Near Antonyms barren, infertile; aborting, miscarrying; delivered

Antonyms nonpregnant