VocabularyBasePractice words

Meaning & use

fantastic

adjective·Everydayinformal

Last updated

UK/fænˈtæstɪk/
US/fænˈtæstɪk/

Meanings

  1. adjectivecomparableinformalapproving

    Extremely good, impressive or enjoyable.

    Grammar: Works before a noun or after a verb: a fantastic view, the food was fantastic.

    Patterns

    • a fantastic job
    • fantastic at something

    We had a fantastic time at the beach.

    She is a fantastic cook.

    The team played a fantastic game.

  2. adjectivebefore a noun

    Very large or extreme in amount or degree, often surprisingly so.

    Grammar: Often found before nouns of amount: a fantastic sum.

    Patterns

    • a fantastic amount of something

    The company earned a fantastic sum last year.

    He told a fantastic number of stories that evening.

    The rocket reached a fantastic speed.

  3. adjectivecomparableliteraryold-fashioned

    Strange, imaginary or hard to believe, as in tales of creatures or wild ideas.

    Grammar: Older sense, mostly in descriptions of stories or ideas.

    Patterns

    • a fantastic tale
    • a fantastic creature

    The book is full of fantastic creatures.

    He told a fantastic tale of a hidden kingdom.

    The plan seemed too fantastic to be real.

Word forms

comparativemore fantastic
superlativemost fantastic

Common combinations

fantastic news
I have fantastic news about your application.
fantastic job
You did a fantastic job on the presentation.
absolutely fantastic
The concert was absolutely fantastic.
fantastic opportunity
This is a fantastic opportunity to learn.
look fantastic
The old house looks fantastic after its repairs.

Synonyms and how they differ

wonderful
Wonderful is a warm, general word of praise and sounds a bit gentler than fantastic.
excellent
Excellent is more formal and judging, as in grades or quality.
amazing
Amazing stresses surprise at how good or remarkable something is.
fabulous
Fabulous is lively and a little more stylish, often used for appearance and parties.

Opposites

terribleawfulordinary

Word family

fantasy noun
an imagined situation or a story of imagined events
fantastically adverb
extremely, or in a wonderful way
fantasize verb
to imagine pleasant things that are unlikely
fantasy adjective
used before a noun for imaginary things, as in a fantasy league

Commonly confused: fantastic or fanatic?

fantastic vs fanatic

A fanatic is someone with extreme enthusiasm, while fantastic is an adjective of praise.

Practice

After months of hard work, the team's results were ___, and everyone was thrilled.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “fantastic”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Your sentence stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.

Explore more words