Dictionary

momentous en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /məʊˈmɛn.təs/ (UK)
• (US) audio
• /moʊˈmɛn.təs/ (US)

Etymology

Etymology tree English moment Proto-Indo-European *h₃ed- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₃édosder.? Proto-Italic *-ŏ̄dsos? Old Latin -ōssus Latin -ōsus Old French -usbor. Middle English -ous English -ous English momentous From moment (“weight, importance”) + -ous.

Meanings

1. Outstanding in importance, of great consequence.
   • Natural selection is arguably the most momentous idea ever to occur to a human mind, because it — alone as far as we know — explains the elegant illusion of design that pervades the living kingdoms and explains, in passing, us. 2007 July 1, Richard Dawkins, “Inferior Design”, in New York Times, retrieved 19 Nov 2013:
   • What to the other parties was merely the sale of a ship was to him a momentous event involving a radically new view of existence. 1902, Joseph Conrad, chapter 3, in The End of the Tether:
   • The reason why I did not publish this book till the end of the last sessions of parliament was, because I did not care to interfere with more momentous affairs. 1725, Daniel Defoe, Everybody's Business is Nobody's Business:
   • The last train ran on December 31, 1932, almost unnoticed, for it coincided with the running of the last steam passenger train down the main line from London to Brighton, a much more momentous event. 1952 December, R. C. Riley, “By Rail to Kemp Town”, in Railway Magazine, page 835:
   • "It has been a momentous month, and I hope we shall all retain healthful recollections of it as long as we live." 1831, James Fenimore Cooper, chapter 31, in Homeward Bound:

Forms

Deriveds

unmomentous · immomentous · momentousness · momentously

Translations (81)

eo gravega (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · oc considerable (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ca definitiu (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pt capital (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · et pöördeline (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · oc fondamental (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · vi quan trọng (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · hy կարևոր (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fr essentiel (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · la magnus (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · oc capital (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fr capital (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · xcl մեծ (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · gl momentoso (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · io grava (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ko 중대하다 (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · hu nagy jelentőségű/horderejű (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · sv betydelsefull (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pt momentoso (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · gl crucial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ca crucial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fr considérable (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · gl transcendental (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · hu jelentős (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · it epocale (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · bg много важен (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pl wielkiej wagi (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · es crucial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · it critico (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · cs významný (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · oc essencial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · io importanta (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · gl capital (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · de folgenreich (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fr fatidique (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fr primordial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · vi trọng yếu (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · es memorable (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · gl primordial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · de gewichtig (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ro însemnat (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fi merkityksellinen (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pl doniosły (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · it importante (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · de denkwürdig (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ru ва́жный (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · it fondamentale (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · tr mühim (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · sa गुरु (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · eu erabakigarri (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · he רב חשיבות (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · gv frioosagh (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fi käänteentekevä (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · cs důležitý (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · he חשוב (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pl znaczący (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · oc important (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ru знаменательный (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ar جَسِيم (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · cs závažný (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fr substantiel (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · sv viktig (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pt importante (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ca crític (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fi merkittävä (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ja 重大な (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pt memorável (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · de bedeutsam (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · es importante (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · tr önemli (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · eu garrantzitsu (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pt crucial (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · az mühüm (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ca significatiu (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · it cruciale (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · fi järisyttävä (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pl ważny (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · de folgenschwer (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · pt crítico (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · ca decisiu (of outstanding importance or great consequence) · de wichtig (of outstanding importance or great consequence)