enorme

Enorme is an adjective used in Italian and Spanish to denote something that is very large in size or extent. In English, the equivalent is enormous. The term is common in everyday speech as well as in literary contexts, and it can be applied to physical dimensions, quantities, or figurative intensity.

In Italian, enorme is invariable in gender and number in the singular, with the plural form being enormi. Thus, you say un oggetto enorme or una casa enorme for singular, and due oggetti enormi or case enormi for plural. The word is frequently placed after the noun, though like most Italian adjectives it can appear before for emphasis or stylistic reasons.

In Spanish, enorme behaves similarly to other adjectives: it is invariable in gender and forms its plural as enormes. Examples include una casa enorme or un edificio enorme for singular, and dos casas enormes or edificios enormes for plural. In both languages, enorme is widely understood and used across formal and informal registers.

Etymology traces the word back to Latin enormis, meaning “out of the norm” or “out of measure,” from a prefix sense of outward or beyond combined with norma, rule or standard. The term spread into the Romance languages as a direct designation of great size or intensity and has remained close in meaning to its Latin origin.

Related terms include gigantesco or descomunal in Spanish and gigantesco or immenso in Italian, used as synonyms when a stronger emphasis on vastness is intended. Enorme also appears in various proper names and brand titles in contemporary usage, though its primary sense remains adjectival.