Etymologically
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immense

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɪˈmɛns/[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French immense,[2][3][4] from Latin immēnsus (“immeasurable, boundless”),[2][3] from in- (“not”) and mēnsus (“measured”), the past participle of mētior (“to measure”) (see measure).[2][3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Great beyond measure: about 1426 (immens) in Barnhart, the early 15th century in Etymonline;[2][3] the OED's first quotation, for much beyond the ordinary size, is from 1490.[6]

Semantic evolution

Unmeasured, too great to be measured, is from 1599,[6] and boundless or infinite from the 16th century.[5] It was a vogue word in the 18th century, mocked for phrases like immense great and immense little;[3] in slang it meant superlatively fine from 1762.[6] Immensity is probably from 1440.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 1426 – immens.[2]
  • 1440 – immensity.[2]
  • 1490 – extremely great.[6]
  • 1599 – immeasurable.[6]
  • 1762 – splendid (slang).[6]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Extremely large; huge, vast.
  2. Without limits; immeasurable.
  3. (informal) Very good; excellent.

Word family

  • immensely
  • immenseness
  • immensity

Usage notes

In north Yorkshire dialect immense meant exactly the thing required.[7]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)