formidableadjective
uk/fɔːˈmɪd.ə.bəl/us/fɔːrˈmɪd.ə.bəl/C2 causing you to have fear or respect for something or someone because that thing or person is large, powerful, or difficult:
a formidable obstacle/task
a formidable adversary/enemy/opponent
a formidable intellect
disapproving the director and his formidable wife
More examples
- She was once a political nonentity, but has since won a formidable reputation as a determined campaigner.
- She is a formidable figure who commands a great deal of respect .
- My tennis is really improving - I've got a formidable two-handed backhand.
- He worked in the property business for a number of years, acquiring a reputation as a formidable wheeler-dealer.
- In Tyson he had come up against a formidable opponent.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Complicated and difficult to do
- advanced
- ambitious
- another
- arduous
- as much as you can do idiom
- fiddly
- fiendish
- fierce
- get blood out of/from a stone idiom
- gruelling
- murky
- picnic
- problematic
- punishing
- rigorous
- schlep
- uphill
- vexed
- wearing
- wearying
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formidably
adverb uk/fɔːˈmɪd.ə.bli/us/fɔːrˈmɪd.ə.bli/