towering
Americanadjective
-
very high or tall; lofty.
a towering oak.
- Synonyms:
- elevated
- Antonyms:
- short
-
surpassing others; very great.
a towering figure in American poetry.
-
rising to an extreme degree of violence or intensity.
a towering rage.
-
beyond the proper or usual limits; inordinate; excessive.
towering pride; towering ambitions.
adjective
-
very tall; lofty
-
outstanding, as in importance or stature
-
(prenominal) very intense
a towering rage
Related Words
See high.
Other Word Forms
- toweringly adverb
Etymology
Origin of towering
From a late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at tower 1, -ing 2
Explanation
Towering things are extremely tall, like the towering skyscrapers in New York City or the towering redwoods in northern California. Use the adjective towering to describe gigantic things that loom over everything (or everyone) else. There's the towering basketball player in your yoga class who is at least a foot taller than the other students, and the towering addition your neighbor is building on his house — the one that will block your view of the lake. The verb tower means "to rise high," from the Latin for "tower," turris.
Vocabulary lists containing towering
Living Large: Synonyms for "Big"
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Unit 4: Powerful Openings
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"The Lotus Seed"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Reeves was already confronted by towering challenges and now this.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
Drawings and computer-generated renderings show a large, winged Lady Liberty flanked by two eagles -- all gilded -- atop a towering white arch.
From Barron's • Apr. 11, 2026
Rodeo Drive, the Beverly Hills Hotel and towering palm trees, said Evan Mateen, head of U.S. real estate for Blank Street.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026
Or perhaps Inland Empire residents can recognize home from the towering Santa Fe smokestack.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
I’m still standing on the third deck stair, towering over Jonah, whose feet are on the grass.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
