From Middle French épique, from Latin epicus, from Ancient Greek ἐπικός (epikós), from ἔπος (épos, “word, story”).
Meanings
Of or relating to an epic.
The main theme of epic poetry is, of course, the hero, his life, his greatness of character, his deeds and his death. 1983, Jan Knappert, Epic Poetry in Swahili and other African Languages, page 58:
Beowulf is an epic poem.
Momentously heroic; grand in scale or character.
China's epic traffic jam "vanished" [title of article] 2010 August 25, Agence France-Presse, “China's epic traffic jam 'vanished'”, in Google News, archived from the original on 28 Aug 2010:
The epic defense was rewarded with the highest military decorations
After all, Epic Fury captures the Trump presidency in its essence. Everything Mr. Trump does, at least as he sees it, is epic — the biggest, the most, the first, “like we’ve never seen before,” as he likes to say. 2026 March 16, Peter Baker, “In Choosing ‘Epic Fury,’ Trump Names a War and Defines His Presidency”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:
(colloquial) Extending beyond the usual or ordinary.
Then tell him his daughter's an epic shag. 2018, Anthony McCarten, Bohemian Rhapsody (motion picture), spoken by Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek):
pt épico (of, or relating to, an epic) · el επικός (of, or relating to, an epic) · de toll (extraordinary) · nl episch (momentously heroic) · nl episch (extraordinary) · ml ഐതിഹാസിക (of, or relating to, an epic) · pl epicki (extraordinary) · be эпі́чны (momentously heroic) · de episch (of, or relating to, an epic) · pt épico (momentously heroic) · gv ard-skeealagh (momentously heroic) · da storslået (extraordinary) · fr épique (momentously heroic) · sv episk (extraordinary) · pt épico (extraordinary) · be эпі́чны (of, or relating to, an epic) · no storslått (extraordinary) · es épico (of, or relating to, an epic) · de Wahnsinns- (extraordinary) · no episk (of, or relating to, an epic) · sv episk (of, or relating to, an epic) · gl épico (of, or relating to, an epic) · fi mieletön (extraordinary) · uk епі́чний (momentously heroic) · ar مَلْحَمِيّ (of, or relating to, an epic) · es épico (momentously heroic) · es epopéyico (extraordinary) · tr epik (of, or relating to, an epic) · th สูงส่ง (extraordinary) · fr épique (of, or relating to, an epic) · nl heldhaftig (momentously heroic) · de außergewöhnlich (extraordinary) · sv episk (momentously heroic) · ca èpic (momentously heroic) · ro epic (of, or relating to, an epic) · ja 壮大な (extraordinary) · de wahnsinnig (extraordinary) · grc ἐπικός (of, or relating to, an epic) · es épico (extraordinary) · pl epicki (of, or relating to, an epic) · fi mahtava (extraordinary) · bg епичен (of, or relating to, an epic) · da episk (of, or relating to, an epic) · ru эпи́ческий (of, or relating to, an epic) · pt extraordinário (extraordinary) · nl episch (of, or relating to, an epic) · ml ഐതിഹാസിക (momentously heroic) · pl epiczny (of, or relating to, an epic) · de denkwürdig (extraordinary) · cs výpravný (of, or relating to, an epic) · ru эпи́ческий (momentously heroic) · gv ard-skeealagh (of, or relating to, an epic) · uk епі́чний (of, or relating to, an epic) · tl epiko (of, or relating to, an epic) · eo epopea (of, or relating to, an epic) · ca èpic (of, or relating to, an epic) · de episch (momentously heroic) · cs epický (of, or relating to, an epic) · fi eeppinen (of, or relating to, an epic)
From Middle French épique, from Latin epicus, from Ancient Greek ἐπικός (epikós), from ἔπος (épos, “word, story”).
Meanings
An extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, celebrating the feats of a deity, demigod (heroic epic), other legend or traditional hero.
The Icelandic epic took all night to recite.
A series of events considered appropriate to an epic; any work of literature, film, etc. having heroic deeds and adventures as its subject matter.
These epics nearly always had runaway trains, nincompoops floundering with the controls and a collapsed bridge just ahead! 1958 February 14, David Gunston, “Railways on the Screen”, in Railway Magazine, page 88:
The book was an epic in four volumes.
A large or extended user story.
Epics are shown in a separate list from user stories. This is because it is the user stories that are developed, not epics. Epics are decomposed into child user stories. 2019, Leslie Munday, Using Agile In A Quality Driven Environment, page 56: