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Gargantua is the name of a giant king in François Rabelais's 16th-century satiric novel Gargantua, the second part of a five-volume series about the giant and his son Pantagruel. All of the details of Gargantua's life befit a giant. He rides a colossal mare whose tail switches so violently that it fells the entire forest of Orleans. He has an enormous appetite, such that in one incident he inadvertently swallows five pilgrims while eating a salad. The scale of everything connected with Gargantua led to the adjective gargantuan, which since William Shakespeare's time has been used for anything of tremendous size or volume.
Synonyms of gargantuan
Examples of gargantuan in a Sentence
Ari Daniel, NPR, 24 Apr. 2026
Proctor will more than likely be put opposite Patrick Paul, who had a promising season as the Dolphins first-year starting left tackle in 2025, could create gargantuan bookends for the offensive line considering Proctor is 6-foot-6, 352 pounds and Paul is 6-foot-7, 326 pounds.
—Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 24 Apr. 2026
The committee proposed that an additional high school could be located at a 100-acre tract west of Morning Star Ranch — one of the gargantuan housing developments contributing to the county’s boom — and north of Lynn McKinney Elementary School and McAnally Middle School.
—Tanya Babbar, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Apr. 2026
Right-wing pundits and politicos recently attacked the gargantuan wildlife crossing being constructed over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills over ballooning costs and delays.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Gargantuan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gargantuan. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
gargantuan
adjective
from Gargantua, a giant with an enormous appetite in books by the French author François Rabelais
