Definition of gigantic

The word "gigantic" originated in the late 16th century from the Latin term "giganas," which referred to a primordial giant or monster from Greek mythology. The influence of the Latin word can be traced back to medieval texts translated from Greek and Latin, where the term "giganta" was used to describe the wife of the giant Antaeus. In the 17th century, editions of Euclid's "Elements" in Latin and Greek introduced the term "gignōnta" and "gigas," which were derived from the Greek word "gignoskē," meaning "to bear" or "to produce." This usage in mathematics referred to geometric figures with large sizes, such as "gigantic circles" and "gigantic lines." By the end of the 18th century, "gigantic" had entered the English language and gained a general meaning for something extremely large or vast in size. In 1798, Erasmus Darwin, a British physician and poet, wrote in his poem "The Botanic Garden" that "Shall my gigantic harvest moulder?" reflecting the newly-established usage of the word in literature. Today, "gigantic" is commonly used to describe objects or entities of colossal proportions, from natural wonders like mountains and waterfalls to technological innovations like computer processors and data storage devices. In a nutshell, the term "gigantic" originated from the Greek mythological character Giganta and evolved through Latin language to describe large-sized geometric shapes before it was adopted into the English language in the late 18th century.