Wordwyrt

enormous

/ɪˈnɔːməs/ih-NAWR-muhs
/ɪˈnɔɹməs/ih-NAWR-muhs

Meaningout of the norm

Common meaning: huge

‘out’ + ‘a builder's right-angle gauge’ → enormous

Journey through time

  1. Latinnorma, -ae‘a builder's right-angle gauge’
  2. Old Frenchenormesource
  3. Englishenormous‘huge’ · today

e- also in: emitejecteraseerecterode

norm also in: normal

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
  • No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
  • US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
  • No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Latin norma ‘a builder's right-angle gauge; hence a standard’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry norma, p. 1216 · dictionary scan

Roots

  • norma, -ae Latin “a builder's right-angle gauge; hence a standard”

Related words

normal

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