mountainous

adjective

moun·​tain·​ous ˈmau̇n-tə-nəs 

ˈmau̇nt-nəs

1

: containing many mountains

2

: resembling a mountain : huge

mountainously adverb

mountainousness noun

Synonyms

• astronomical
• astronomic
• Brobdingnagian
• bumper
• colossal
• cosmic
• cosmical
• cyclopean
• elephantine
• enormous
• galactic
• gargantuan
• giant
• gigantesque
• gigantic
• grand
• herculean
• heroic
• heroical
• Himalayan
• huge
• humongous
• humungous
• immense
• jumbo
• king-size
• king-sized
• leviathan
• mammoth
• massive
• mega
• mighty
• monster
• monstrous
• monumental
• oceanic
• pharaonic
• planetary
• prodigious
• super
• super-duper
• supersize
• supersized
• titanic
• tremendous
• vast
• vasty
• walloping
• whacking
• whopping

Examples of mountainous in a Sentence

the seemingly mountainous obstacles he had to overcome while growing up

Recent Examples on the Web

Police, the fire brigade, coast guard and volunteers were searching for Mosley on and offshore the small mountainous island in the eastern Aegean, using a helicopter, drones and a rescue dog as temperatures hit 104 degrees Farenheit. —Brie Stimson, Fox News, 7 June 2024

The new species lives in a mountainous woodland habitat, the study said. —Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 6 June 2024

The mountainous transportation corridor along Idaho 55 is an especially challenging area for building, given seismic activity and the geology of the region, State Geologist Claudio Berti told the Statesman. —Kevin Fixler, Idaho Statesman, 3 June 2024

Look closely, and the mountainous image, seemingly static, is gently breathing. —Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mounteynous, borrowed from Anglo-French muntaignus, from muntaigne, mountaigne mountain + -us -ous

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

mountainous

adjective

moun·​tain·​ous ˈmau̇nt-ᵊn-əs 

-nəs

1

: having many mountains

2

: resembling a mountain : huge