Adjectives that describe the sizes of different people, places, and things are very common. Among these adjectives are the very common words ‘big’ and ‘small.’ If you follow this blog regularly you likely already know what these words (big and small) mean, as they are very basic English words, and this blog is written for an intermediate to advanced audience.
Today, I want to expand your vocabulary of adjectives used to describe size by giving you many more adjectives that you can use to describe things that are big and small. To start I am going to list a number of synonyms for the words ‘big’ and ‘small,’ then I will give some examples of how to use these adjectives so that you can see these different words in context.
Synonyms
big
Close synonyms: large, great, ample, giant, huge, sizable
Words used to express that something is very big: capacious, colossal, copious, enormous, extensive, gigantic, hulking, humongous, ginormous, immense, jumbo, mammoth, massive, monster, vast, whopping, substantial, tremendous, mondo
small
Close synonyms: little, tiny, mini, slight
Words used to express that something is very small: itsy, itty-bitty, teeny, teeny-tiny, teensy, bitty, minuscule, pint-sized, wee, puny, miniature, minuscule
Examples sentences (all of the words listed above are adjectives and so they are used similarly in a sentence, i.e. before a noun):
A mammoth storm is headed right toward us.
That is a mondo ice cream sundae, I am definitely going to need your help you eat it.
The vast desert is home to many cacti, but few people.
That is a monster piece of pie!
I will be getting a humongous raise when I start my new job.
Jane has an itty-bitty problem with our plan.
Chiuaua’s are pint-sized dogs.
The puny apartment is not worth $900 in rent.
Okay, so now you have a whole list of new ways to say ‘big’ and ‘small’ and some examples of how to use these words, but what about how they are pronounced? Here is a website you can check-out that provides pronunciation for most of the words listed above and many more words too: http://www.howjsay.com/. Just type the word into the box at the top of the webpage and click ‘submit.’ Happy listening!
I hope this post has been massive help to you in learning a wee bit more English. 🙂
