Choose the Right Synonym for vast

Adjective

enormous, immense, huge, vast, gigantic, colossal, mammoth mean exceedingly large. enormous and immense both suggest an exceeding of all ordinary bounds in size or amount or degree, but enormous often adds an implication of abnormality or monstrousness. an enormous expense an immense shopping mall huge commonly suggests an immensity of bulk or amount. incurred a huge debt vast usually suggests immensity of extent. the vast Russian steppes gigantic stresses the contrast with the size of others of the same kind. a gigantic sports stadium colossal applies especially to a human creation of stupendous or incredible dimensions. a colossal statue of Lincoln mammoth suggests both hugeness and ponderousness of bulk. a mammoth boulder

Examples of vast in a Sentence

Adjective She has a vast amount of knowledge on this subject. The policy is supported by the vast majority of citizens. a vast expanse of land

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective The golf itself, meanwhile, wasn’t exactly supercharged—light crowds were spread across much of the vast grounds here on the first day of the tournament. — Andrew Beaton, WSJ, 30 July 2022 But Murdoch, who controls a vast swath of the political media world, has spent decades learning to ride the waves of U.S. politics and hedge his bets on candidates. — Jeremy Barr, Washington Post, 30 July 2022 Montana’s vast spaces and epic vistas, its mountains and boundless plains, seem made for a road trip. — David R. Baker, BostonGlobe.com, 30 July 2022 The Grenons claim the solution can cure a vast variety of illnesses ranging from cancer to autism to malaria to COVID-19. — CBS News, 29 July 2022 In addition to expanding into the mainstream U.S. market, ZEE5 is also actively growing its native audience in a vast country where the South Asian population is scattered and spoilt for choice. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 29 July 2022 Water rights, livestock rules and marijuana licenses are among the many local dramas that consume the time of the five commissioners in this vast swath of rural and deeply Republican Nevada. — Sam Metz, Anchorage Daily News, 29 July 2022 Imperial Japan conscripted a vast force of tens of millions of slave laborers from across Asia during its World War II conquests of much of the continent. — Kerry J. Byrne, Fox News, 28 July 2022 Sophie is still trying to get her life — marked by a fancy house, vast wardrobe and one gala event after another — back together five months after what authorities have deemed a suicide attempt, involving a leap from a ferry. — Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 July 2022 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun These technologies will make the resulting image-continuum vast. — Rashed Haq, Wired, 20 Jan. 2022 Furthermore, it could be easily scaled up, thereby opening vasts swaths of the universe to observation without the hefty price tag associated with building large, solid telescopes. — Daniel Oberhaus, WIRED, 11 June 2019 That is a more ticklish argument: the obstruction laws are complicated and the ambit of presidential power vast. — The Economist, 7 June 2018 As a Cold War-era child who did drop-and-cover nuclear-attack drills under my desk, I’d been ingrained with ominous, gray images of Soviet military tanks rolling through the vast cobbled landmark. — Norma Meyer, sandiegouniontribune.com, 20 Sep. 2017 Near Potsdam, and a stone’s throw from the breathtaking gardens of Sanssouci Palace, lies Templiner See: Vast and choppy, there’s a seaside holiday vibe in the air. — Alexandra Pereira, CNT, 9 Aug. 2017 A clatter of gunshots suggested the worst The Brillante was built like two rectangles joined at a right angle: one vast, flat, hollow shape that held the liquid cargo, and one smaller, upright stack that contained mechanical systems and crew spaces. — Bloomberg.com, 27 July 2017 Vast and growing databases compiled for commerce and policing are also for sale to politicians and their strategists, who can now know more about you than your spouse or parents. — Nina Burleigh, Newsweek, 8 June 2017 Vast sums must be invested to build refineries and smelters to turn that ore into metal. — James R. Hagerty, WSJ, 10 Mar. 2017 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vast.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for vast

Adjective

borrowed from Latin vāstus or vastus "devoid of habitation, desolate, dreary," also, "of great size, immense," probably in part continuing Indo-European *h₁u̯eh₂-sto- (whence Old High German wuosti "empty, deserted," Old English wēste, Old Irish fás), in part conflated with another base *wast- of uncertain origin

Noun

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