great

1 having or showing exceptional knowledge, experience, or skill in a field of endeavor one of the great anthropologists Synonyms accomplished, ace, adept, compleat, complete, consummate, crack, crackerjack, educated, experienced, expert, good, proficient, master, masterful, masterly, practiced (also practised), professed, skilled, skillful, versed, veteran, virtuosoRelated Words adroit, clever, deft, dexterous (also dextrous), handy, slick, sure-handed; gifted, talented; polished, refined; effective, effectual, efficient, workmanlike; able, capable, competent, employable, fit, fitted, habile, qualified; educated, knowledgeable, schooled, taught, trained, tutored; all-around (also all-round), well-rounded; long-term, old; multiskilled, multitalentedNear Antonyms incapable, incompetent, inept, unable, unfit, unfitted, unqualified, weak; artless, crude, rude; ineffective, ineffectual, inefficient; talentless, ungifted, untalented; ignorant, unschooled, untaught, untrained, untutored; beginning, green, inexperienced, new, raw, unseasoned, untested, untried, would-be; primitive, rough, unpolished; awkward, clumsy, ham-fisted, ham-handed, heavy-handedAntonyms amateur, amateurish, inexperienced, inexpert, jackleg, unprofessional, unseasoned, unskilled, unskillful

2 having, characterized by, or arising from a dignified and generous nature a great humanitarian great acts of charity Synonyms big, chivalrous, elevated, gallant, noble, greathearted, high, high-minded, lofty, lordly, magnanimous, natural, sublimeRelated Words ennobled, exalted, glorified; heroic (also heroical), honorable, valiant, venerable, worthy; knightly, princely, regal; inspiring, moving, numinous, uplifting; august, magnificent, majesticNear Antonyms sordid, squalid, vile, wretched; abominable, contemptible, despicable, detestable, hateful, offensive, repulsive, ugly, vicious; dastardly, dirty, lousy, sorry; little, mean, narrow, small-minded; degrading, discreditable, humiliating, ignominious; coarse, crude, vulgarAntonyms base, debased, degenerate, degraded, ignoble, low

3 lasting for a considerable time haven't seen them in a great while Synonyms extended, far, long, lengthy, long-drawn-out (or long-drawn), long-lived, long-termRelated Words aeonian (or aeonic), endless, everlasting, interminable, persistent; longish, overlong, prolonged, protracted; permanent; all-day, all-night; multiday, multiyearNear Antonyms abrupt, sudden; abbreviated, condensed, curtailed, shortened; ephemeral, fleeting, momentary, transient, transitory; impermanent; short-rangeAntonyms brief, little, mini, short, shortish, short-lived, short-term

4 of a size greater than average of its kind saw a great moose calmly walking through our backyard Synonyms big, biggish, boxcar, bulky, considerable, goodly, grand, large, handsome, hefty, hulking, husky, largish, outsize (also outsized), oversize (or oversized), sizable (or sizeable), substantial, tidy, voluminousRelated Words astronomical (also astronomic), Brobdingnagian, bumper, Bunyanesque, cavernous, colossal, cosmic (also cosmical), cyclopean, elephantine, enormous, galactic, gargantuan, gigantic, gross, hellacious, herculean, heroic (also heroical), Himalayan, huge, humongous (also humungous), immense, jumbo, king-size (or king-sized), leviathan, major, mammoth, massive, monolithic, monstrous, monumental, mountainous, pharaonic, prodigious, staggering, stupendous, super, super-duper, supersized, titanic, tremendous, vast, vasty, walloping, whacking, whopping; excessive, exorbitant, extravagant, extreme, immoderate, inordinate; abundant, ample, appreciable, copious, plentiful; fat, thick; capacious, commodious, roomy, spaciousNear Antonyms diminutive, half-pint, infinitesimal, Lilliputian, little-bitty, microminiature, microscopic (also microscopical), mini, miniature, minuscule, minute, pint-size (or pint-sized), pocket-size (also pocket-sized), pygmy, teensy, teensy-weensy, teeny, teeny-weeny, tiny, wee; petite, slender, slight, slim, thinAntonyms bantam, dinky, dwarf, dwarfish, little, puny, shrimpy, small, smallish, undersized (also undersize)

5 of the very best kind this cake is great! Synonyms A-OK, A1, awesome, bang-up, banner, beautiful, blue-chip, blue-ribbon, boffo, bonny (also bonnie) [chiefly British], boss [slang], brag, brave, bully, bumper, capital, choice, classic, cool [slang], corking, crackerjack, cracking, dandy, divine, dope [slang], down [slang], dynamite, fab, fabulous, famous, fantabulous [slang], fantastic, fine, first-class, first-rate, first-string, five-star, four-star, frontline, gangbusters (also gangbuster), gilt-edged (or gilt-edge), gone [slang], grand, excellent, groovy, heavenly, high-class, hot, hype [slang], immense, jim-dandy, keen, lovely, marvelous (or marvellous), mean, neat, nifty, noble, number one (also No. 1), numero uno, out-of-sight [slang], par excellence, peachy, peachy keen, phat [slang], prime, primo [slang], prize, prizewinning, quality, radical [slang], righteous [slang], sensational, slick, splendid, stellar, sterling, superb, superior, superlative, supernal, swell, terrific, tip-top, top, top-flight, top-notch, top-of-the-line, topping [chiefly British], top-shelf, unsurpassed, wizard [chiefly British], wonderfulRelated Words acceptable, adequate, all right, decent, good, OK (or okay), passable, satisfactory, tolerable; better, exceptional, fancy, high-grade, high-test, premium, select, special, superfine; classical, standard, traditionalNear Antonyms bad, inferior, low-grade, substandard, unsatisfactory; mediocre, middling, second-class, second-rateAntonyms atrocious, awful, execrable, lousy, pathetic, poor, rotten, terrible, vile, wretched

6 showing urgent desire or interest she's great on any type of sport that requires endurance Synonyms agog, antsy, anxious, ardent, athirst, avid, crazy, desirous, enthused, enthusiastic, excited, geeked [slang], eager, greedy, gung ho, hepped up, hopped-up, hot, hungry, impatient, juiced, keen, nuts, pumped, raring, solicitous, stoked [slang], thirsty, voracious, wildRelated Words engaged, interested; happy, hung up, obsessed; ambitious, appetent, covetous, craving, hankering, longing, pining; breathless, restive, restless; amenable, disposed, game, glad, inclined, ready, unreluctant, willingNear Antonyms casual, incurious, insouciant, nonchalant, unconcerned, uninterested; aloof, detached, disinterested; impassive, stolid; halfhearted, lackadaisical, languid, languorous, lukewarm, spiritless; averse, disinclined, hesitant, loath (also loth or loathe), reluctant, unwillingAntonyms apathetic, indifferent, uneager, unenthusiastic

7 coming before all others in importance regards global warming as the great issue of the day Synonyms arch, big, capital, cardinal, central, chief, dominant, first, grand, foremost, greatest, highest, key, leading, main, master, number one (also No. 1), numero uno, overbearing, overmastering, overriding, paramount, predominant, preeminent, premier, primal, primary, principal, prior, sovereign (also sovran), supremeRelated Words distinguished, eminent, illustrious, noble, notable, noteworthy, outstanding, prestigious, signal, star, stellar, superior; high-level, senior, top; important, influential, major, mighty, momentous, significant; incomparable, matchless, unequaled (or unequalled), unparalleled, unsurpassed; celebrated, famed, famous, renownedNear Antonyms inconsequential, inconsiderable, insignificant, minor, negligible, slight, trifling, trivial, unimportant; collateral, inferior, secondary, subordinate, subsidiaryAntonyms last, least

8 of high birth, rank, or station a descendant of one of the great families of Philadelphia Synonyms aristocratic, blue-blooded, genteel, gentle, grand, noble, highborn, highbred, patrician, silk-stocking, upper-class, upper-crust, wellbornRelated Words high, lofty, superior; elevated, ennobled, exalted; gentlemanly, kingly, knightly, ladylike, lordly, princely, queenly, regal, royal; high-level, seniorNear Antonyms inferior, knavish; bastard, illegitimate; ordinary, plain; abased, degraded; junior, subordinateAntonyms baseborn, common, humble, ignoble, low, lower-class, lowly, mean, nonaristocratic, plebeian, ungenteel