massive

adjective

mas·​sive ˈma-siv 

1

: forming or consisting of a large mass:

a

: bulky

massive furniture

b

: weighty, heavy

massive walls

a massive volume

c

: impressively large or ponderous

stars more massive than the sun

d

: having no regular form but not necessarily lacking crystalline structure

massive sandstone

2

a

: large, solid, or heavy in structure

massive jaw

b

: large in scope or degree

… the feeling of frustration, of being ineffectual, is massive.

—David Halberstam

c(1)

: large in comparison to what is typical

a massive dose of penicillin

(2)

: being extensive and severe

massive hemorrhage

(3)

: imposing in excellence or grandeur

massive simplicity

the most massive American dramatist of his time

—Newsweek

3

: having mass (see mass entry 2 sense 1c)

a massive boson

massively adverb

massiveness noun

Synonyms of massive

• heavy
• hefty

Examples of massive in a Sentence

The fort had massive walls.

stars more massive than the sun

A massive effort will be required to clean up the debris.

You can find a massive amount of information on the Internet.

The stunt received massive publicity.

a massive collection of baseball cards

Recent Examples on the Web

Yearning to light some tech on fire is a relatable feeling these days, as generative artificial intelligence promises to supplant nearly every form of non-physical labor, social media wreaks havoc on the mental health of young people, and massive data centers loom as environmental blights. —Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2026

The rally was organized by the Federation of Cuban Women, a massive organization with close ties to the government and the Communist Party, to honor the late Vilma Espín, the federation’s founder, a guerrilla fighter and Raúl Castro’s wife. —ABC News, 7 Apr. 2026

There’s never a night where there’s not just massive amounts of energy being thrown back at me. —Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Apr. 2026

The massive timepiece features faces on all four sides, each with a diameter of 141 feet. —Nathalie Nietzsche-Knappe, Architectural Digest, 7 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English massiffe, from Anglo-French mascif, alteration of massiz, from Vulgar Latin *massicius, from Latin massa mass

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for massive

• passive
• impassive

Kids Definition

massive

adjective

mas·​sive ˈmas-iv 

1

: weighty sense 1, heavy

massive walls

2

a

: large, solid, or heavy in structure

a massive jaw

b

: large in extent or degree

a massive effort

3

: having mass

massively adverb

massiveness noun

Medical Definition

massive

adjective

mas·​sive ˈmas-iv 

1

: large in comparison to what is typical

—used especially of medical dosage or of an infectious agent

a massive dose of penicillin

2

: being extensive and severe

—used of a pathologic condition

a massive hemorrhage

a massive collapse of a lung