terrific

adjective

ter·​rif·​ic tə-ˈri-fik 

1

: unusually fine : magnificent

terrific weather

2

: extraordinary

terrific speed

3

a

: exciting or fit to excite fear or awe

a terrific thunderstorm

b

: very bad : frightful

terrifically

tə-ˈri-fi-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Synonyms of terrific

• excellent
• wonderful
• great
• superb
• fantastic
• awesome
• lovely
• fabulous
• beautiful
• marvelous
• stellar
• prime
• fine

Examples of terrific in a Sentence

She's given me some terrific ideas.

Your test scores were terrific.

They did a terrific job painting the house.

I had a terrific time.

I've recovered completely. In fact, I feel terrific.

We were hit by a terrific snowstorm last week.

Recent Examples on the Web

This puzzle is stuffed with nuance, pleasing crosses and a lot of simply terrific, ridiculously evocative stuff — for example, a jarring assortment of lovely trivia intersecting with some hideous ailments at more than one juncture. — Caitlin Lovinger, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026

Goessling, a lifelong music obsessive who once worked in the music business, thought that was terrific. — Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Not enough praise can be heaped upon the excellent cast (in addition to those mentioned above, there’s the terrific Nia Otchere-Sarfo and Jordan Rice rounding out the clique). — Greg Evans, Deadline, 28 Sep. 2026

Ternus seems terrific, but Cook as CEO was so special in so many ways. — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 27 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin terrificus, from terrēre to frighten

First Known Use

1667, in the meaning defined at sense 3b

Rhymes for terrific

• horrific
• pacific
• prolific
• salvific
• specific
• calorific
• conspecific
• hieroglyphic
• honorific
• nonspecific
• scientific
• soporific

Kids Definition

terrific

adjective

ter·​rif·​ic tə-ˈrif-ik 

1

: causing terror : terrible

terrific destruction

2

: very great in degree : extraordinary

a car going at terrific speed

3

: unusually good

makes terrific chili

terrifically

-i-k(ə-)lē 

adverb