momentous
adjective
mo·men·tous
mō-ˈmen-təs 
mə-
: having great or lasting importance : consequential, significant
a momentous decision
a momentous event/occasion
The Senate begins a momentous debate on health care today …—
The New York Times
The New York TimesDeydey usually talked about his travels, the places he'd seen and the people, the close calls and momentous encounters with animals, weather, other Anishinabeg, and best of all, ghosts.—Louise Erdrich
Louise ErdrichThe late nineteenth century was strewn with inventions. Many were momentous, but few affected men and women more closely than the bicycle and its motorized offspring: motorcycle, motor-car and aeroplane.—Eugen Weber
Eugen Weber
momentously
adverb
a momentously important decision
… a … twist that is executed differently from the comic book story, but is just as dramatically and momentously presented.
—The Philippines Daily Inquirer
The Philippines Daily Inquirer
momentousness
noun
But other East Europeans had little time to marvel at the momentousness of the moment. Just one day after the fall of the [Berlin] Wall, Bulgaria's dour leader of 35 years, Todor Zhivkov, was ousted.
—Stephen E. Deane
Stephen E. Deane
Synonyms
Examples of momentous in a Sentence
My college graduation was a momentous day in my life.
a momentous occasion that will go down in the history books
Recent Examples on the Web
As a baseline, Chris Hayes points to Abraham Lincoln’s debates with Stephen A. Douglas, in the eighteen-fifties: three-hour exchanges of orations about a momentous topic, slavery.
—Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
This race will mark a momentous return for NASCAR Cup events at Bowman Gray Stadium—a venue that hasn't hosted the series since 1971.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 18 Jan. 2025
The momentous task of repairing and rebuilding could take years as owners navigate government aid, securing insurance payouts, obtaining building permits and the rest.
—Nora O’Neill, Charlotte Observer, 14 Jan. 2025
Read Document 174 pages The report amounted to an extraordinary rebuke of a president-elect, capping a momentous legal saga that saw the man now poised to regain the powers of the nation’s highest office charged with crimes that struck at the heart of American democracy.
—Alan Feuer, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2025
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Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 20 Jan. 2025
This race will mark a momentous return for NASCAR Cup events at Bowman Gray Stadium—a venue that hasn't hosted the series since 1971.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 18 Jan. 2025
The momentous task of repairing and rebuilding could take years as owners navigate government aid, securing insurance payouts, obtaining building permits and the rest.
—Nora O’Neill, Charlotte Observer, 14 Jan. 2025
Read Document 174 pages The report amounted to an extraordinary rebuke of a president-elect, capping a momentous legal saga that saw the man now poised to regain the powers of the nation’s highest office charged with crimes that struck at the heart of American democracy.
—Alan Feuer, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for momentous
Dictionary Entries Near momentous
Cite this Entry
“Momentous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/momentous. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
momentous
adjective
mo·men·tous
mō-ˈment-əs
: very important
a momentous decision
momentously
adverb
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