Go to MSN Homeencarta®
Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
Click to move up the list of words
greaseball
greasepaint
greaseproof
greaseproof paper
greaser
greasewood
greasy
greasy spoon
great
great-
great ape
Great Attractor
great auk
great-aunt
Great Australian Bight
Great Barrier Reef
Great Basin
Click to move down the list of words
Also available:

World English Dictionary
Dictionnaire Français

great
great [ grayt ]


adjective  (comparative great·er, superlative great·est)
Definition:
 
1. impressively large: very large and impressive
2. large in number: large in number, or with many parts
a great crowd of well-wishers
3. bigger than others: larger or more important than others of the same kind
4. much: extreme or more than usual
It gives me great pleasure to introduce our speaker tonight.
5. lasting long time: lasting a long time, or covering a long distance
We endured a great delay.
one of the world's great railway journeys
6. important: very significant or important
a truly great novel
7. exceptionally talented: with exceptional talents or achievements
He was a great humanitarian as well as a talented artist.
8. powerful: powerful and influential
striving to make our nation great again
in this great nation
9. expert: able to do something very well, or very skillful with something ( informal )

10. very good: very good or pleasing
We had a great time at the party.
11. useful: very useful or suitable for a particular task ( informal )
This cast-iron pan is great for making pancakes.
12. being good example of something: doing something often, enjoying something very much, or being a very good example of something
13. used for emphasis: used to emphasize how much of a quality somebody or something has ( informal )
Their new house is a great big place out in the country.
14.  ( archaic )
Same as  pregnant (sense 1)
She was great with child.


noun  (plural greats)
Definition:
 
1. somebody great: somebody whose fame or influence has proved to be long-lasting
one of the all-time greats of blues music
2. music part of pipe organ: the principal division of a pipe organ


adverb 
Definition:
 
very well: very well ( informal )
That's it; you're doing great.
Steve and I get along just great.
[ Old English grēat "thick, coarse" < Germanic]

great·ly adverb
great·ness noun

Cultural Note

The Great Gatsby, a novel (1925) by U.S. writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set on Long Island, New York, it is the story of enigmatic businessman Jay Gatsby, a symbol of the American obsession with wealth and status, whose attempts to revive a relationship with an old girlfriend lead to his downfall. It was made into movies by Elliott Nugent in 1949 and by Jack Clayton in 1974. Terms such as Gatsbyesque, obsessed with social status and the acquisition of great riches, derive directly from the book title and the character.
Encarta® World English Dictionary [North American Edition] © & (P)2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Developed for Microsoft by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.
Advertisement
© 2009 Microsoft