epic

1 of 2

noun

ep·​ic ˈe-pik 

1

: a long narrative poem in elevated style recounting the deeds of a legendary or historical hero

the Iliad and the Odyssey are epics

2

: a work of art (such as a novel or drama) that resembles or suggests an epic

3

: a series of events or body of legend or tradition thought to form the proper subject of an epic

the epic of the winning of the West

epic

2 of 2

adjective

1

: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of an epic

an epic poem

2

a

: extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size or scope

his genius was epic

—The Times Literary Supplement (London)

b

: heroic

epical

ˈe-pi-kəl 

adjective

epically

ˈe-pi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Did you know?

Does epic mean "impressive" or just "big"?

When epic began to be used as an adjective in English it was in specific reference to the characteristics of the type of poem that bears the same name. A couple of centuries passed, and the word’s meaning came to describe other kinds of works, aside from poetry, which had similarly grand characteristics. More recently, epic has been found used in a highly colloquial fashion, in a manner that is largely synonymous with outstanding, fabulous, or impressive. Before you pass judgment on whether this new sense of epic is acceptable to you or not, you might want to consider that all the words that this sense is synonymous with have also changed their meanings dramatically: outstanding originally described something that projected or stuck out, fabulous had to do with fables, and impressive used to mean “capable of being impressed.”

Synonyms

Adjective

• august
• baronial
• gallant
• glorious
• grand
• grandiose
• heroic
• heroical
• Homeric
• imperial
• imposing
• magnific
• magnificent
• majestic
• massive
• monumental
• noble
• proud
• regal
• royal
• splendid
• stately

Examples of epic in a Sentence

Noun

Homer's ancient Greek epic “The Odyssey”.

Adjective

The football game was an epic battle between two great teams.

The bridge was an epic achievement.

The company is engaged in an epic struggle for survival.

an accomplishment of epic proportions

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Directed by Uberto Pasolini (Still Life, Nowhere Special), the film is a retelling of Homer’s Odyssey, or more accurately the end of the epic, when Odysseus (Fiennes), after 20 years away at war, washes up on the shores of Ithaca, his old kingdom. —Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Sep. 2024

Advertisement Movies Sir David Lean, Director of ‘Lawrence of Arabia,’ Dies : Movies: The Oscar winner’s sweeping epics include ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’ and ‘Dr. Zhivago.’ April 17, 1991 Norman Leslie Spencer was born in London on Aug. 13, 1914, and grew up in Essex. —Malia Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2024

Adjective

All of the performers, along with executive producers Jay-Z and Jesse Collins, won the outstanding live variety special Emmy for the epic performance. —Mesfin Fekadu, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2024

In the mid-1990s, Callinan moved to San Francisco to work for Robertson Stephens Investments—just in time to live through both the inflation of the dotcom bubble and its epic bursting in March 2000. —Hank Tucker, Forbes, 7 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Latin epicus, from Greek epikos, from epos word, speech, poem — more at voice

First Known Use

Noun

1583, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1589, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing epic

• beast epic
• epic fail
• epic simile

Kids Definition

epic

1 of 2 adjective

ep·​ic ˈep-ik 

1

: of, relating to, or being like an epic

an epic poem

2

: unusually long or great in size or scope

epic genius

epic

2 of 2 noun

: a long poem telling of the deeds of a hero and often centering on the ideals of a nation or culture