If you refer to theenormityof something that you consider to be a problem or difficulty, you are referring to its very great size, extent, or seriousness.
I was numbed by the enormity of the responsibility. [+ of]
He was anxious about the enormity of the task ahead.
Synonyms: hugeness, extent, magnitude, greatness More Synonyms of enormity
2. uncountable noun
If you refer to theenormityof an event, you are emphasizing that it is terrible and frightening.
[emphasis]
It makes no sense to belittle the enormity of the disaster which has occurred. [+ of]
3. countable noun [oft NOUNof noun]
An enormity is an action that is considered totally unacceptable.
[formal]
...the enormities they committed.
...the enormity of what slavery meant.
More Synonyms of enormity
enormity in British English
(ɪˈnɔːmɪtɪ)
nounWord forms: plural-ties
1.
the quality or character of being outrageous; extreme wickedness
2.
an act of great wickedness; atrocity
3. informal
vastness of size or extent
▶ USAGE In modern English, it is common to talk about the enormity of something such as a task or a problem, but one should not talk about the enormity of an object or area: distribution is a problem because of India's enormous size (not India's enormity)
Word origin
C15: from Old French enormite, from Late Latin ēnormitās hugeness; see enormous
enormity in American English
(iˈnɔrməti; ɪˈnɔrməti)
nounWord forms: pluraleˈnormities
1.
great wickedness
the enormity of a crime
2.
a monstrous or outrageous act; very wicked crime
3.
enormous size or extent; vastness
in modern use, considered a loose usage by some
Word origin
Fr enormité < L enormitas < enormis, irregular, immoderate, immense < e-, out + norma, rule: see norm
Examples of 'enormity' in a sentence
enormity
You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
We did not realise the enormity of the situation back then.
The Sun (2010)
It drives home the enormity of a disaster that directly affected more than eight million people.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
The enormity is something we want to capture.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
It also highlights the enormity of the task facing the new energy minister.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Soon the enormity of the situation was clear.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The narcissism of identity politics is spectacularly out of kilter with the enormity of the challenges the country now faces.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
But overall there is little sign that policy-makers have grasped the enormity of what has happened.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The sense of the enormity of the landscape is vivid, the cold and the loneliness tangible.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
The Villa fans were enjoying themselves despite the enormity of the situation.
The Sun (2013)
During the three weeks before the wedding, the enormity of the situation hits home.
The Sun (2006)
I was overcome by the enormity of the situation.
The Sun (2015)
But a magazine aimed at helping pastors and church leaders today simply can't dismiss the enormity of the problem.
Christianity Today (2000)
It comes about because a crime has been committed, a crime of such enormity that the game itself must cease.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
This term continues to undermine the recovery of victims and plays down the enormity of the crimes so the perpetrators continually get away with pathetically short sentences.
The Sun (2013)
Recent and archive footage is hauntingly combined, encouraging us to look beyond the enormity of the disaster and confront the individual human tragedies.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
They probably didn't understand the enormity of what they were doing, the impact of their probe.
The Sun (2015)
That's why I fear we are unable to realise the enormity of the threat we face.
The Sun (2015)
WHEN a group of fans appeared outside his house and a host of pundits turned on him, he realised the enormity of what he had done.
The Sun (2011)
I hope growing awareness of the enormity of the task he faces in Dusseldorf doesn't prey on his confidence.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
In other languages
enormity
British English: enormity NOUN
If you refer to the enormity of something that you consider to be a problem or difficulty, you are referring to its very great size, extent, or seriousness.
I was numbed by the enormity of the responsibility.
American English: enormity
Brazilian Portuguese: enormidade
Chinese: 艰巨性
European Spanish: enormidad
French: énormité
German: Ausmaß
Italian: enormità
Japanese: >重大さ問題などの
Korean: 막중함
European Portuguese: enormidade
Latin American Spanish: enormidad
1 (noun)
Definition
the vastness or extent of a problem or difficulty
(informal)
I was appalled by the enormity of the task ahead of us.
Synonyms
hugeness
extent
The full extent of the losses was revealed yesterday.
magnitude
the magnitude of the task confronting them
greatness
vastness
immensity
The immensity of the universe is difficult to grasp.
massiveness
enormousness
extensiveness
2 (noun)
Definition
extreme wickedness
the enormity of the crime they had committed
Synonyms
wickedness
moral arguments about the wickedness of nuclear weapons
They have sunk to new levels of wickedness.
disgrace
atrocity
stomach-churning tales of atrocity and massacre
depravity
the absolute depravity that can exist in times of war
viciousness
The book romanticizes the viciousness of organized crime.
villainy
They justify their villainy in the name of their high ideals.
turpitude (formal)
a beacon of morality in a sea of turpitude
outrageousness
baseness
vileness
evilness
monstrousness
heinousness
nefariousness
atrociousness
3 (noun)
Definition
an act of great wickedness
accounts of the horrific enormities perpetrated
Synonyms
atrocity
Those who committed this atrocity should be punished.
crime
He has committed no crime and poses no danger to the public.
horror
the horror of this most bloody of civil wars
evil
Racism is one of the greatest evils in the world.
outrage
The terrorists' latest outrage is a bomb attack on a busy station.
disgrace
monstrosity
the monstrosity of Nazism
abomination
What is happening is an abomination.
barbarity
the barbarities committed by the invading army
villainy
Additional synonyms
in the sense of abomination
What is happening is an abomination.
Synonyms
outrage,
bête noire,
horror,
evil,
shame,
plague (informal),
curse,
disgrace,
crime,
atrocity,
torment,
anathema,
barbarism,
bugbear
in the sense of barbarity
Definition
a vicious act
the barbarities committed by the invading army
Synonyms
atrocity,
cruelty,
horror,
inhumanity
in the sense of crime
Definition
an act prohibited and punished by law
He has committed no crime and poses no danger to the public.