giantism

noun

gi·​ant·​ism ˈjī-ən-ˌti-zəm How to pronounce giantism (audio)
1
: the quality or state of being a giant
giantism in industry
2

Examples of giantism in a Sentence

the American taste for giantism: big cars, big houses, big servings of food
Recent Examples on the Web Brontotheres, the ancient North American ancestors of the horse, is a giantism outlier as—growing from around 40 pounds to four to five tons in 16 million years. Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 16 May 2023 In an especially mind-bending passage, Wengrow and Graeber show that the majority of Paleolithic tombs contained not grandees but individuals with physical anomalies including dwarfism, giantism, and spinal abnormalities. Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 11 July 2022 Other prehistoric examples of autapomorphic giantism include the extinct mega-ducks of Hawaii, as well as the dodo, which was essentially an enormous pigeon, said Dr. Worthy. Cara Giaimo, New York Times, 6 Aug. 2019 The researchers think the parrot evolved this way because of a phenomenon known as autapomorphic giantism, in which a member of an otherwise moderately sized group becomes humongous by taking over an empty ecological niche. Cara Giaimo, New York Times, 6 Aug. 2019 The extraordinary success of the giant three-ring circus gave rise to other forms of exportable American giantism, such as amusement parks, department stores, and shopping malls. Janet M. Davis, Smithsonian, 22 Mar. 2017

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'giantism.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1639, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of giantism was in 1639

Dictionary Entries Near giantism

Cite this Entry

“Giantism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/giantism. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Medical Definition

giantism

noun
gi·​ant·​ism ˈjī-ənt-ˌiz-əm How to pronounce giantism (audio)

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