hefty
adjective
ˈhef-tē 
heftier; heftiest
1
: quite heavy
2
a
: marked by bigness, bulk, and usually strength
a hefty football player
b
: powerful, mighty
c
: impressively large : substantial
hefty portions
heftily
ˈhef-tə-lē
adverb heftiness
ˈhef-tē-nəs
noun 
Synonyms
- heavy
- massive
- ponderous
- weighty
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
He was a tall, hefty man. Her boss gave her a hefty raise. a hefty dose of irony He gave the door a hefty kick.
Recent Examples on the Web Phoenix Suns team owner Robert Sarver accepts the hefty fine and suspension, but doesn't agree with all the results of the 10-mth NBA investigation. 
Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 13 Sep. 2022 According to court filings, dozens of people paid the hefty fee, plus an extra $40,000 each, and lost their money. Graham Kates, CBS News, 6 Sep. 2022 The league previously pushed for an indefinite suspension and hefty fine. Tom Withers, Chicago Tribune, 18 Aug. 2022 The league previously pushed for an indefinite suspension and hefty fine. Tom Withers, ajc, 18 Aug. 2022 For example, the bill demands that the oil and gas industry either capture leaks of methane, a very harmful greenhouse gas, or pay a hefty fee for failing to do so. Steven Mufson, Anchorage Daily News, 9 Aug. 2022 Violating sanctions by doing business with those on the SDN list is a serious offense that could carry hefty fines or prison time. Scott Nover, Quartz, 26 Aug. 2022 And the emissions thresholds fall significantly for the second deadline, in 2030, which is likely to mean that many more buildings will need to make major changes — not just tuning up building systems but replacing them — or pay hefty fines. New York Times, 16 Aug. 2022 The bill will impose limits on methane leakage and impose hefty fines on violators, while creating a royalty fee for all methane extraction on public lands, including methane that’s vented or flared from oil and gas wells. Wes Siler, Outside Online, 28 July 2022 See More
Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 13 Sep. 2022 According to court filings, dozens of people paid the hefty fee, plus an extra $40,000 each, and lost their money. Graham Kates, CBS News, 6 Sep. 2022 The league previously pushed for an indefinite suspension and hefty fine. Tom Withers, Chicago Tribune, 18 Aug. 2022 The league previously pushed for an indefinite suspension and hefty fine. Tom Withers, ajc, 18 Aug. 2022 For example, the bill demands that the oil and gas industry either capture leaks of methane, a very harmful greenhouse gas, or pay a hefty fee for failing to do so. Steven Mufson, Anchorage Daily News, 9 Aug. 2022 Violating sanctions by doing business with those on the SDN list is a serious offense that could carry hefty fines or prison time. Scott Nover, Quartz, 26 Aug. 2022 And the emissions thresholds fall significantly for the second deadline, in 2030, which is likely to mean that many more buildings will need to make major changes — not just tuning up building systems but replacing them — or pay hefty fines. New York Times, 16 Aug. 2022 The bill will impose limits on methane leakage and impose hefty fines on violators, while creating a royalty fee for all methane extraction on public lands, including methane that’s vented or flared from oil and gas wells. Wes Siler, Outside Online, 28 July 2022 See More Word History
First Known Use
1863, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing hefty
Kids Definition
hefty
adjective
ˈhef-tē
heftier; heftiest
1
: heavy sense 1
2
: very forceful
He opened the door with a hefty shove.
hefty
adjective
1
as in massive
having great weight that's a pretty hefty book bag for a tiny person like you Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- massive
- heavy
- weighty
- ponderous
- substantial
- outsize
- bulky
- voluminous
- burdensome
- solid
- elephantine
- outsized
- massy
- lumpish
- leaden
- overweight
- top-heavy
- ultraheavy
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- light
- slight
- weightless
- feathery
- fluffy
- flimsy
- insubstantial
- lightweight
- gossamer
- ethereal
- airy
- undersized
- undersize
- gossamery
- underweight
- ultralight
- ultralightweight
2
as in sizable
of a size greater than average of its kind received a hefty donation from the local business association for holiday lights along Main Street Synonyms & Similar Words
- sizable
- large
- substantial
- considerable
- big
- huge
- handsome
- great
- tidy
- oversize
- massive
- enormous
- excessive
- gigantic
- staggering
- colossal
- sizeable
- tremendous
- bulky
- outsize
- voluminous
- oversized
- vast
- largish
- hulking
- goodly
- outsized
- husky
- mammoth
- whopping
- grand
- immense
- extravagant
- gargantuan
- biggish
- ample
- humongous
- astronomical
- exorbitant
- boxcar
- major
- stupendous
- humungous
- prodigious
- spacious
- super
- walloping
- monstrous
- titanic
- herculean
- jumbo
- elephantine
- whacking
- copious
- plentiful
- inordinate
- monumental
- mountainous
- appreciable
- cavernous
- cosmic
- monolithic
- thick
- vasty
- gross
- astronomic
- supersized
- bumper
- leviathan
- extreme
- heroic
- galactic
- king-sized
- abundant
- cyclopean
- immoderate
- hellacious
- Brobdingnagian
- heroical
- pharaonic
- super-duper
- king-size
- capacious
- commodious
- Bunyanesque
- cosmical
- roomy
- fat
- Himalayan
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- small
- little
- smallish
- puny
- dinky
- tiny
- minuscule
- undersize
- diminutive
- undersized
- dwarf
- dwarfish
- shrimpy
- bantam
- microscopic
- teensy
- teeny
- infinitesimal
- mini
- miniature
- wee
- little bitty
- slight
- slender
- microscopical
- minute
- thin
- slim
- pygmy
- petite
- pocket-sized
- pocket-size
- pint-sized
- teeny-weeny
- teensy-weensy
- microminiature
- pint-size
- half-pint
- Lilliputian
3
as in powerful
strongly and heavily built hefty since childhood, he became a champion wrestler Synonyms & Similar Words
- powerful
- beefy
- mighty
- burly
- athletic
- hulking
- husky
- strong
- brawny
- sturdy
- stout
- heavy
- solid
- muscular
- robust
- mesomorphic
- herculean
- strapping
- rugged
- sinewy
- stalwart
- chunky
- compact
- stocky
- thickset
- squat
- heavyset
- squatty
- muscle-bound
- pudgy
- chubby
- portly
- lumpish
- tubby
- dumpy
- podgy
- able-bodied
- roly-poly
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- slight
- slender
- thin
- lightweight
- light
- slim
- lean
- svelte
- spare
- willowy
- skinny
- bony
- scrawny
- lanky
- gaunt
- weedy
- stringy
- sylphlike
- waspish
- wiry
- reedy
- twiggy
- gawky
- scraggy
- puny
- weak
- feeble
- delicate
- fragile
- gangling
- wimpy
- spidery
- frail
- boney
- gangly
- weakly
- effete
- enfeebled
- infirm
- debilitated
- emaciated
- unathletic
- enervated