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formidable - 4 dictionary results

for⋅mi⋅da⋅ble

  [fawr-mi-duh-buhl]
Use formidable in a Sentence
–adjective
1. causing fear, apprehension, or dread: a formidable opponent.
2. of discouraging or awesome strength, size, difficulty, etc.; intimidating: a formidable problem.
3. arousing feelings of awe or admiration because of grandeur, strength, etc.
4. of great strength; forceful; powerful: formidable opposition to the proposal.
Origin:
1400–50; late ME < F < L formīdābilis causing fear, equiv. to formīd- (s. of formīdāre to fear) + -ābilis -able

Related forms:
for⋅mi⋅da⋅ble⋅ness, for⋅mi⋅da⋅bil⋅i⋅ty, noun
for⋅mi⋅da⋅bly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. dreadful, appalling, threatening, menacing, fearful, frightful, horrible.

Antonyms:
1. pleasant.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To formidable
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: "Though a true hero, he was also a thoroughgoing bureaucrat and politician, a formidable combination" (Mario Puzo).
  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, appears to be on the rise in American English. The traditional pronunciation is apparently still preferred by a large majority of educated speakers, however. A recent survey shows that 80 percent of the Usage Panel use the pronunciation (fôr'mĭ-də-bəl), while 14 percent use (fôr-mĭd'ə-bəl). A few Panelists approved both pronunciations.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Formidable

For"mi*da*ble\, a. [L. formidabilis, fr. formidare to fear, dread: cf. F. formidable.] Exciting fear or apprehension; impressing dread; adapted to excite fear and deter from approach, encounter, or undertaking; alarming.

They seemed to fear the formodable sight. --Dryden.

I swell my preface into a volume, and make it formidable, when you see so many pages behind. --Drydn.

Syn: Dreadful; fearful; terrible; frightful; shocking; horrible; terrific; tremendous.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : formidable
Spanish: temible, imponente,
German: furchtbar,
Japanese: 恐ろしい
More Translations »

formidable 
1508, from M.Fr. formidable, from L. formidabilis, from formidare "to fear," from formido "terror, dread."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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