herculean

herculean
/herr'kyeuh lee"euhn, herr kyooh"lee euhn/, adj.
1. requiring the great strength of a Hercules; very hard to perform: Digging the tunnel was a herculean task.
2. having enormous strength, courage, or size.
3. (cap.) of or pertaining to Hercules or his labors.
[1590-1600; < L Hercule(us) of, belonging to HERCULES + -AN]
Syn. 1. prodigious, arduous, onerous, formidable.

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  • Herculean — Her*cu le*an, a. [L. herculeus, fr. Hercules: cf. F. hercul[ e]en. See {Hercules}.] [1913 Webster] 1. Requiring the strength of Hercules; hence, very great, difficult, or dangerous; as, an Herculean task. [1913 Webster] 2. Having extraordinary… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • herculean — HERCULEÁN, Ă, herculeeni, e, adj. Asemenea lui Hercule, caracteristic lui Hercule; foarte puternic; voinic. [pr.: le an. – var.: erculeán, ă adj.] – Din fr. herculéen. Trimis de gall, 26.07.2002. Sursa: DEX 98  herculeán adj. m. (sil. le an) …   Dicționar Român

  • Herculean — UK / US or Herculean UK [ˌhɜː(r)kjʊˈliːən] / US [ˌhɜrkjəˈlɪən] / US [hərˈkjulɪən] adjective a) needing a lot of strength and determination in order to be achieved a herculean task b) a herculean person is very big and strong …   English dictionary

  • herculean — UK / US or Herculean UK [ˌhɜː(r)kjʊˈliːən] / US [ˌhɜrkjəˈlɪən] / US [hərˈkjulɪən] adjective a) needing a lot of strength and determination in order to be achieved a herculean task b) a herculean person is very big and strong …   English dictionary

  • Herculean — [hər kyo͞o′lē ən; hʉr΄kyo͞o lē′ən, hʉr′kyo͞o lē΄ən] adj. 1. of Hercules 2. [usually h ] a) having the great size, strength, or courage of Hercules; very powerful or courageous b) calling for great strength, size, or courage; very difficult to do… …   English World dictionary

  • Herculean — index omnipotent, onerous, operose, powerful, prodigious (enormous), strong Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton …   Law dictionary

  • Herculean — 1590s, from HERCULESE (Cf. Herculese) + AN (Cf. an) …   Etymology dictionary

  • Herculean — *huge, vast, immense, enormous, elephantine, mammoth, giant, gigantic, gigantean, colossal, gargantuan, cyclopean, titanic, Brobdingnagian …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • Herculean — [adj] powerful, strong almighty, backbreaking, colossal, courageous, forceful, gargantuan, gigantic, hard, heroic, huge, impressive, laborious, mighty, strenuous, tough, vigorous; concepts 489,527,540,574 …   New thesaurus

  • Herculean — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ requiring or having great strength or effort. ORIGIN named after the Roman and Greek mythological hero Hercules (famed for his strength) …   English terms dictionary

  • Herculean — adjective /hərˈkjuːliən/ a) Of extraordinary difficulty, might, power, size, etc.; of or relating to Hercules in size or strength. But this is not the best:look, prythee, Charmian, / How this Herculean Roman does become / The carriage of his… …   Wiktionary

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