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great

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The definition of great is very much above the ordinary quality or size.

(adjective)

An example of great is scoring 90 on a test.
An example of great is the dimensions of an elephant.

See great in Webster's New World College Dictionary

adjective

of much more than ordinary size, extent, volume, etc.; esp.,
1. designating a thing or group of things larger than others of the same kind: the great cats are tigers, lions, etc.; the Great Lakes
2. large in number, quantity, etc.; numerous: a great company
3. long in duration: a great while
much higher in some quality or degree; much above the ordinary or average; esp.,
1. existing in a high degree; intense: a great light, great pain
2. very much of a; acting much as (something specified): a great reader
3. eminent; distinguished; illustrious; superior: a great playwright
4. very impressive or imposing; remarkable: great ceremony
5. having or showing nobility of mind, purpose, etc.; grand: a great man, great ideas
of most importance; main; chief: the great seal
Informal clever; expert; skillful: usually with at: great at tennis
☆ Informal excellent; splendid; fine
Now Chiefly Dial. pregnant
chiefly in great with child

Origin: ME grete < OE great, akin to Ger gross, Du groot < IE base *ghrēu-, rub hard over, crumble > grit, Welsh gro, sand: basic sense “coarse, coarsegrained”

adverb

Informal very well

noun

a great or distinguished person: usually used in pl.

Related Forms:

greatly adverb
greatness noun

older (or younger) by one generation: each additional great- shows one further generation removed: great-aunt, great-great-grandson

Origin: < great, taken as intensifier

See great in American Heritage Dictionary 4

adjective great·er, great·est

Very large in size.
Larger in size than others of the same kind.
Large in quantity or number: A great throng awaited us. See Synonyms at large.
Extensive in time or distance: a great delay.
Remarkable or outstanding in magnitude, degree, or extent: a great crisis.
Of outstanding significance or importance: a great work of art.
Chief or principal: the great house on the estate.
Superior in quality or character; noble: “For he was great, ere fortune made him so” (John Dryden).
Powerful; influential: one of the great nations of the West.
Eminent; distinguished: a great leader.
Grand; aristocratic.
Informal Enthusiastic: a great lover of music.
Informal Very skillful: great at algebra.
Informal Very good; first-rate: We had a great time at the dance.
Being one generation removed from the relative specified. Often used in combination: a great-granddaughter.
Archaic Pregnant.

noun

pl. greats or great One that is great: a composer considered among the greats.
Music
a. A division of most pipe organs, usually containing the most powerful ranks of pipes.
b. A similar division of other organs.

adverb
Informal

Very well: got along great with the teacher.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English grete

Origin: , from Old English grēat, thick, coarse

Related Forms: