herculean

adjective

ˌhər-kyə-ˈlē-ən How to pronounce herculean (audio)
Definition of herculeannext
1
as in difficult
requiring considerable physical or mental effort the herculean task of grading 60 student essays over one weekend

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in enormous
unusually large a herculean banquet table that took eight men to lift it

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for herculean
  1. difficult
  2. enormous
  3. challenging
  4. tremendous
  5. tough
  6. huge
  7. formidable
  8. gigantic
Adjective
  • The day of his funeral was an incredibly difficult one for his grieving widow Barbara, their four adult children, including Kordisch Tucker, and his grandchildren.
    Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 7 Dec. 2024
  • Weightiness in Its Black and White Cinematography Co-star Nicholas Hoult had his own experience dealing with these difficult scene partners and decided to make the best of it by having fun with some of his fellow players, including Bill Skarsgård, who plays the blood-thirsty creature Count Orlok.
    Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 7 Dec. 2024
Definition of difficult
Adjective
  • The regulatory hurdles are enormous to begin with, but manufacturing challenges following approval are considerable, too.
    Joshua P. Cohen, Forbes, 7 Dec. 2024
  • Lottery players have seen enormous jackpots recently, with previous winners of both the Powerball and Mega Millions breaking into the top 10 largest jackpots in U.S. lottery history.
    Lorenzino Estrada, The Arizona Republic, 7 Dec. 2024
Definition of enormous
Adjective
  • Making something on that scale for an AI game studio backed by someone with no experience in making games would be…challenging.
    Paul Tassi, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024
  • The most challenging part of this one dish recipe is chopping the potatoes, which of course isn't even difficult.
    Mary Shannon Wells, Southern Living, 29 Nov. 2024
Definition of challenging
Adjective
  • Automatically Generating Tag Types Managing data through tags can give tremendous flexibility to the enterprise data owner.
    Manosiz Bhattacharyya, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024
  • In 2024, we were honored to work alongside communities, families, and individuals who, despite facing tremendous hardship, are redefining what’s possible.
    Janine Henni, People.com, 2 Dec. 2024
Definition of tremendous
Adjective
  • Another commenter urged the original poster to stand her ground, and suggested a practical approach in the midst of the tough situation.
    Rachel Raposas, People.com, 30 Nov. 2024
  • Powell inhabits a handful of tough guys and embodies a few more idiosyncratic tropes—a long-haired Russian, a Patrick Bateman power-suit type, and a character seemingly inspired by Tilda Swinton—to convince his marks.
    Ian Crouch, The New Yorker, 29 Nov. 2024
Definition of tough
Adjective
  • The program was a huge success in that most all of these prisoners successfully completed their sentence without incident.
    Walter Pavlo, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024
  • There are a huge amount of Champagnes on the market, each one with its unique expression.
    Sam Stone, Bon Appétit, 2 Dec. 2024
Definition of huge
Adjective
  • Angela Lansbury played the formidable Lady Adelaide Stitch, the family’s great-aunt.
    Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 29 Nov. 2024
  • Fellow seniors Kyle Ashman, Noah Clarke and Jordan Ross form a formidable group of fourth-year players who have driven the Mustangs’ run over the last two seasons.
    Taylor Lyons, Baltimore Sun, 29 Nov. 2024
Definition of formidable
Adjective
  • Yet another, a gigantic bib of turquoise and malachite beads, yellow and white diamonds, cushion-cut yellow sapphire, and a cushion aquamarine, pays homage to the covert watch necklace with an upside-down timepiece pendant dangling at the end of it.
    Shannon Adducci, Robb Report, 6 Dec. 2024
  • With the baseball world heading to Dallas for the Winter Meetings on Sunday, one gigantic question is hovering over the Yankees and the rest of the league: where will Juan Soto sign?
    Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 6 Dec. 2024
Definition of gigantic
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near herculean

herbs

herculean

herd

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Cite this Entry

“Herculean.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/herculean. Accessed 11 Dec. 2024.

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