heftier; heftiest
1
: quite heavy
2
a
: marked by bigness, bulk, and usually strength
a hefty football player
c
: impressively large : substantial
hefty portions
heftily adverb
heftiness noun

Examples of hefty in a Sentence

He was a tall, hefty man. Her boss gave her a hefty raise. a hefty dose of irony He gave the door a hefty kick.
Recent Examples on the Web From Malibu to Switzerland, these celebrities properties around the world listed and sold at shockingly hefty prices The A-list is living large on a big budget. Zoey Lyttle, Peoplemag, 23 Sep. 2023 Proposition 10 slapped cigarettes with a hefty surcharge to pressure smokers to give up their habit and used the money to improve the health and well-being of young children and their families. Jenny Gold, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2023 His May and June bills were equally hefty, with Jones spending $63,925 and $85,114, respectively, again without taking stock of legal and professional fees, the filing said. Liam Reilly, CNN, 14 Sep. 2023 The unit also comes with a hefty $17,495 monthly maintenance fee, as well as a concierge, doorman, resident super and manager, and the privilege of paying for access to the adjacent members-only River Club offering an athletic club with a pool, tennis and squash courts, a gym and restaurant. Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 19 Sep. 2023 Even the former Vice-President Mike Pence, that noted tribune of the working class, has keyed in on the hefty subsidies for the purchase of E.V.s that Democrats provided in last year’s Inflation Reduction Act. John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2023 Other cases of Ryanair in customer service rows have cropped up in recent times, including where an elderly couple was charged a hefty fee of $136 just to print their tickets at the airport. Byprarthana Prakash, Fortune, 18 Sep. 2023 The potential penalties are serious: hefty prison time and tens of thousands in fines. Lauren McGaughy, Dallas News, 18 Sep. 2023 Combine them with sour cream, mayonnaise, and a hefty amount of shredded cheese that bakes into an irresistible sauce. Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 15 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hefty.' 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

1863, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hefty was in 1863

Dictionary Entries Near hefty

Cite this Entry

“Hefty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hefty. Accessed 3 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

hefty

adjective
heftier; heftiest
heftily adverb
heftiness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on hefty

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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