cyclopean
adjective
cy·clo·pe·an ˌsī-klə-ˈpē-ən 
sī-ˈklō-pē-
sī-ˈklō-pē- 1
often capitalized : of, relating to, or characteristic of a Cyclops
2
: huge, massive
3
: of or relating to a style of stone construction marked typically by the use of large irregular blocks without mortar
Did you know?
The Cyclopes of Greek mythology were huge, crude giants, each with a single eye in the middle of his forehead. Odysseus and his men had a terrible encounter with a Cyclops, and escaped utter disaster only by stabbing a burning stick into the monster's eye. The great stone walls at such ancient sites as Troy and Mycenae are called cyclopean because the stones are so massive and the construction (which uses no cement) is so expert that it was assumed that only a superhuman race such as the Cyclopes could have achieved such a feat.
Synonyms
- astronomical
- astronomic
- Brobdingnagian
- bumper
- colossal
- cosmic
- cosmical
- elephantine
- enormous
- galactic
- gargantuan
- giant
- gigantesque
- gigantic
- grand
- herculean
- heroic
- heroical
- Himalayan
- huge
- humongous
- humungous
- immense
- jumbo
- king-size
- king-sized
- leviathan
- mammoth
- massive
- mega
- mighty
- monster
- monstrous
- monumental
- mountainous
- oceanic
- pharaonic
- planetary
- prodigious
- super
- super-duper
- supersize
- supersized
- titanic
- tremendous
- vast
- vasty
- walloping
- whacking
- whopping
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
a cyclopean granite statue that the dictator himself had commissioned
Recent Examples on the Web Rachmaninoff’s humbling presence, re-encountered, is gigantic, cyclopean. 
Joseph Horowitz, WSJ, 17 Sep. 2018 Vividly monumental aggregates of cyclopean arches, inverted pyramids, louvered domes, layered patterns and saturated colors—this is not the rigidly principled modernism of Le Corbusier or the inviolate geometry of Louis Kahn. Julie V. Iovine, WSJ, 22 Feb. 2017 Of course, the short, goggled and sometimes cyclopean minions are on hand, engaging in a prison food fight and dancing in a cancan-like production number. Innocuous pandemonium ensues in candy colors. Andy Webster, New York Times, 29 June 2017 Iran, Syria, Mali, Somalia, Eritrea, Iraq—in a Cyclopean cellar wrapped in near-total darkness. Ali Arkady, Smithsonian, 2 May 2017
Joseph Horowitz, WSJ, 17 Sep. 2018 Vividly monumental aggregates of cyclopean arches, inverted pyramids, louvered domes, layered patterns and saturated colors—this is not the rigidly principled modernism of Le Corbusier or the inviolate geometry of Louis Kahn. Julie V. Iovine, WSJ, 22 Feb. 2017 Of course, the short, goggled and sometimes cyclopean minions are on hand, engaging in a prison food fight and dancing in a cancan-like production number. Innocuous pandemonium ensues in candy colors. Andy Webster, New York Times, 29 June 2017 Iran, Syria, Mali, Somalia, Eritrea, Iraq—in a Cyclopean cellar wrapped in near-total darkness. Ali Arkady, Smithsonian, 2 May 2017 Word History
First Known Use
1582, in the meaning defined at sense 1
cyclopean
adjective
as in giant
unusually large a cyclopean granite statue that the dictator himself had commissioned Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- giant
- gigantic
- colossal
- mammoth
- enormous
- vast
- massive
- huge
- monster
- titanic
- monstrous
- astronomical
- tremendous
- monumental
- mountainous
- immense
- elephantine
- mighty
- cosmic
- bumper
- astronomic
- oceanic
- gargantuan
- leviathan
- planetary
- mega
- grand
- galactic
- pharaonic
- prodigious
- big
- heroic
- sizable
- humongous
- super
- oversize
- herculean
- heroical
- jumbo
- hulking
- great
- Brobdingnagian
- supersized
- oversized
- whacking
- majestic
- humungous
- cosmical
- gigantesque
- whopping
- handsome
- king-sized
- vasty
- formidable
- walloping
- super-duper
- substantial
- imposing
- supersize
- good
- considerable
- Himalayan
- staggering
- king-size
- gross
- overgrown
- infinite
- towering
- monolithic
- bulky
- outsize
- voluminous
- goodly
- major
- cavernous
- extensive
- grandiose
- tidy
- lofty
- stupendous
- hefty
- outsized
- august
- overwhelming
- sizeable
- largish
- boundless
- immeasurable
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- tiny
- miniature
- microscopic
- micro
- diminutive
- microscopical
- pygmy
- midget
- infinitesimal
- wee
- minuscule
- teensy
- teeny
- pocket
- bitty
- small
- bantam
- little bitty
- puny
- little
- mini
- minute
- petite
- smallish
- microminiature
- undersized
- undersize
- Lilliputian
- dwarfish
- teensy-weensy
- teeny-weeny
- dinky
- pint-sized
- pint-size
- half-pint
- freewheels
- freewill
- Freewill Baptist
- freewill offering
- freewiller
- freewillest
- freewomen
- freewrite
- freewriting
- freewritings
- freezable
- freezabler
- freezablest
- freeze
- freeze dryer
- freeze fracture
- freeze in one's tracks
- freeze out
- freeze over
- freeze to death
- freeze-dried
- freeze-dries
- freeze-dry
- freeze-drying
- freeze-etched