formidable
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for·mi·da·ble
(fôr′mĭ-də-bəl, fôr-mĭd′ə-)adj.
1. Arousing fear, dread, or alarm: the formidable prospect of major surgery.
2. Inspiring awe, admiration, or wonder: "A woman of formidable intelligence and tenacity, [she] prides herself on being independent-minded" (Nan Levinson).
3. Difficult to undertake, surmount, or defeat: a formidable challenge; a formidable opponent.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin formīdābilis, from formīdāre, to fear, from formīdō, fear.]
for′mi·da·bil′i·ty, for′mi·da·ble·ness n.
for′mi·da·bly adv.
Usage Note: Traditionally formidable has been pronounced with stress on the first syllable, but recently the pronunciation with stress on the second syllable, which is a common variant in British English, has seen increasing use in American English. However, the traditional pronunciation is still preferred by a large majority of the Usage Panel. In our 2008 survey, 73 percent favored the pronunciation with stress on the first syllable, and 27 percent favored the other pronunciation. Both pronunciations are acceptable, however.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
formidable
(ˈfɔːmɪdəbəl)adj
1. arousing or likely to inspire fear or dread
2. extremely difficult to defeat, overcome, manage, etc: a formidable problem.
3. tending to inspire awe or admiration because of great size, strength, excellence, etc
[C15: from Latin formīdābilis, from formīdāre to dread, from formīdō fear]
ˌformidaˈbility, ˈformidableness n
ˈformidably adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
for•mi•da•ble
(ˈfɔr mɪ də bəl or, sometimes, fərˈmɪd ə-)adj.
1. causing fear or apprehension: a formidable opponent.
2. of discouraging or awesome size, difficulty, etc.; intimidating: a formidable problem.
3. arousing feelings of awe or admiration: formidable intelligence.
4. strong; forceful; powerful: formidable opposition.
[1400–50; late Middle English < French < Latin formīdā(re) to fear]
for′mi•da•ble•ness, for`mi•da•bil′i•ty, n.
for′mi•da•bly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Adj. | 1. | formidable - extremely impressive in strength or excellence; "a formidable opponent"; "the challenge was formidable"; "had a formidable array of compositions to his credit"; "the formidable army of brains at the Prime Minister's disposal" impressive - making a strong or vivid impression; "an impressive ceremony" |
| 2. | formidable - inspiring fear; "the formidable prospect of major surgery"; "a tougher and more redoubtable adversary than the heel-clicking, jackbooted fanatic"- G.H.Johnston; "something unnerving and prisonlike about high grey wall" alarming - frightening because of an awareness of danger |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
formidable
adjective
1. difficult, taxing, challenging, overwhelming, staggering, daunting, mammoth, colossal, arduous, very great, onerous, toilsome We have a formidable task ahead of us.
difficult easy
difficult easy
2. impressive, great, powerful, tremendous, mighty, terrific, awesome, invincible, indomitable, redoubtable, puissant She looked every bit as formidable as her mother.
3. intimidating, threatening, dangerous, terrifying, appalling, horrible, dreadful, menacing, dismaying, fearful, daunting, frightful, baleful, shocking a formidable, well-trained, well-equipped fighting force
intimidating encouraging, comforting, cheering, pleasant, reassuring, heartening, genial
intimidating encouraging, comforting, cheering, pleasant, reassuring, heartening, genial
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
formidable
adjective1. Causing or able to cause fear:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
مُخيف، رَهيب، مُريعهائِن صَعْب
hrozivýnesmírnýobrovskýstrašný
formidabelfrygtindgydende
nagyarányú
ægilegur, óárennilegurmjög erfiîur
baisingaibaisingassunkiai įveikiamas
briesmīgsgrūti pārvaramsgrūts
hrôzu naháňajúci
formidable
[ˈfɔːmɪdəbl] ADJ [person] → formidable; [opponent] → temible; [task, challenge, obstacle] → tremendo, impresionante; [reputation, team, combination, talents] → formidable, extraordinariohe has a formidable temper → tiene un genio tremendo
she was a formidable woman → era una mujer formidable or que imponía
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
formidable
[fərˈmɪdəbəl ˈfɔːrmɪdəbəl] adj [task] → ardu(e); [person, opponent] → redoutable; [reputation] → impressionnant(e)Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
formidable
adj (= commanding respect) person → Achtung gebietend; intellect, intelligence → überragend; (= powerful, impressive) challenge, achievement, task, obstacle, strength, energy, height → gewaltig; person, reputation → beeindruckend; opponent → mächtig; sight → überwältigend; talents → außerordentlich; team, combination → außerordentlich stark; she is small but formidable → sie ist klein aber oho (inf); to be in formidable form → in absoluter Hochform sein
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
formidable
[ˈfɔːmɪdəbl] adj (task, difficulties) → formidabile, terribile; (person, appearance) → che incute rispettoCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
formidable
(ˈfoːmidəbl) , (fəːˈmidəbl) adjective1. rather frightening. a formidable appearance.
2. very difficult to overcome. formidable difficulties.
ˈformidably adverbKernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.