Herculean
adjective
ˌhər-ˈkyü-lē-
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The hero Hercules, son of the god Zeus by a human mother, was famous for his superhuman strength. As penance for a madness-induced murder spree (the victims were his family), he was forced to perform twelve enormously difficult tasks, or “labors.” These ranged from descending into the underworld to bring back the terrifying dog that guarded its entrance to destroying the many-headed monster called the Hydra. The feats he accomplished explain how Herculean in the 16th century came to be used for any job or task that’s extremely difficult or calls for enormous strength.
Examples of Herculean in a Sentence
Phil Plait, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2026
In that context, even reaching the play-offs in May would be a Herculean effort for a team who, just three years ago this weekend, were heading to Maidstone United for a league fixture.
—Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2026
In the late 1960s, Fowler was charged with the Herculean task of planning and building Disney’s secretive Project X — which would become Florida’s Magic Kingdom.
—Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
But what must feel like a Herculean task for a young actor navigating sudden fame looked like a breeze for Williams, who walked Fallon around his own set (and onto his knees) like the Canadian owned the whole damn building.
—Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 8 Jan. 2026
Your Home While cleaning the entire house seems like a Herculean task, the rewards are worth it.
—Daley Quinn, Southern Living, 4 Jan. 2026
Clutch effort is Herculean, and shifting is indelicate but immensely satisfying.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 19 Dec. 2025
Herculean search efforts in the southern Indian Ocean, where the jet is believed to have gone down, have thus far turned up virtually nothing.
—CBS News, 3 Dec. 2025
But most Germans would associate Herculean feats of beer lifting with the iconic image of the Oktoberfest barmaid carrying an armload of Masskrüge through a crowd of drunken idiots.
—Martin Fritz Huber, Outside, 6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Herculean.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Herculean. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
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