formidable

English

Etymology

From Middle English formidable, from Old French formidable, formible, from Latin formīdābilis (“formidable, terrible”) (whence -able), from formīdō (“fear, dread”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fɔːˈmɪdəbəl/, /fəˈmɪdəbəl/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈfɔɹmɪdəbəl/, /fɔɹˈmɪdəbəl/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

Adjective

formidable (comparative more formidable, superlative most formidable)

1. Causing fear, dread, awe, or discouragement as a result of size, strength, or some other impressive feature; commanding respect; causing wonder or astonishment.

   Synonym: redoubtable

   • 1823, [Walter Scott], “The Contrast”, in Quentin Durward. […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page 3:

     The latter part of the fifteenth century prepared a train of future events, that ended by raising France to a formidable power, which has ever since been, from time to time, the principal object of jealousy to the other European nations.

   • 1954, Plato, translated by Hugh Tredennick, “Socrates on Trial: The Apology”, in The Last Days of Socrates (Penguin Classics), Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Books, →OCLC, page 20:

     […] and I am more afraid of those people than I am of Anytus and his colleagues, although they are formidable enough.

2. Difficult to defeat or overcome.

   a formidable opponent

   • 1978, Richard Nixon, RN: the Memoirs of Richard Nixon‎^[1], Grosset & Dunlap, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 577:

     As I look back on that week in China two impressions stand out most vividly. One is the awesome sight of the disciplined but wildly—almost fanatically—enthusiastic audience at the gymnastic exhibition in Peking, confirming my belief that we must cultivate China during the next few decades while it is still learning to develop its national strength and potential. Otherwise we will one day be confronted with the most formidable enemy that has ever existed in the history of the world.

   • 2012 May 9, John Percy, “Birmingham City 2 Blackpool 2 (2–3 on agg): Match report”, in Tony Gallagher, editor, The Daily Telegraph‎^[2], London: Telegraph Media Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 6 January 2018:

     [Ian] Holloway has unfinished business in the Premier League after relegation last year and he will make a swift return if he can overcome West Ham a week on Saturday. Sam Allardyce, the West Ham manager, will be acutely aware that when the stakes are high, Blackpool are simply formidable.

Derived terms

• formidability
• formidableness
• formidably
• informidable
• superformidable
• unformidable

Translations

causing fear, dread, awe or admiration as a result of size, strength, or some other impressive quality

• Armenian: ահեղ (hy) (aheġ), ահարկու (hy) (aharku)
• Belarusian: гро́зны (hrózny)
• Bulgarian: страхови́т (bg) (strahovít), страхо́тен (bg) (strahóten)
• Catalan: formidable (ca)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 可畏 (ho² wai³)

  Hokkien: 可畏 (khó-ùi)

  Mandarin: 可畏 (kěwèi), 令人生畏的 (lìngrénshēngwèide)

• Czech: hrozný (cs), ohromný (cs), ohromující (cs), úžasný (cs)
• Danish: frygtindgydende; formidabel
• Dutch: ontzagwekkend (nl)
• Finnish: mahtava (fi), valtava (fi), vaikuttava (fi), pelottava (fi)
• German: respekteinflößend (de), furchteinflößend (de), furchterregend (de), gewaltig (de), beachtlich (de), formidabel (de)
• Greek: υπέροχος (el) (ypérochos), τρομερός (el) (tromerós), δεινός (el) (deinós), αμόρφωτος (el) (amórfotos)
• Hungarian: ijesztő (hu), félelmetes (hu)
• Irish: do-iongabhála, forránta, gríobhach, iontach, ollmhór, scanrúil
• Japanese: 怖ろしい (ja) (osoroshii), 怖ろしく強い (osoroshikutsuyoi)
• Latin: formīdābilis
• Māori: kaiora, marutuna
• Norwegian: formidabel
• Occitan: formidable (oc)
• Polish: groźny (pl)
• Portuguese: formidável (pt)
• Romanian: formidabil (ro), groaznic (ro)
• Russian: гро́зный (ru) (gróznyj), устраша́ющий (ru) (ustrašájuščij), внуши́тельный (ru) (vnušítelʹnyj), чудо́вищный (ru) (čudóviščnyj) (monstrous)
• Sanskrit: उग्र (sa) (ugra)
• Slovak: hrozný
• Spanish: formidable (es)
• Swedish: fruktansvärd (sv)
• Turkish: ürkütücü (tr)
• Ukrainian: грі́зний (hríznyj)

difficult to defeat or overcome

• Armenian: հսկայական (hy) (hskayakan)
• Czech: nepřekonatelný (cs) m
• Dutch: formidabel (nl)
• Finnish: vaarallinen (fi), haastava (fi), voittamaton (fi)
• French: redoutable (fr)
• Indonesian: hebat (id)
• Norwegian: formidabel
• Russian: труднопреодоли́мый (ru) (trudnopreodolímyj), трудноразреши́мый (ru) (trudnorazrešímyj)
• Spanish: formidable (es)
• Swedish: formidabel (sv)

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin formīdābilis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Central) [fur.miˈðab.blə]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [for.miˈðab.blə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [foɾ.miˈða.ble]
• IPA^(key): (Northwestern) [for.miˈðab.ble]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

Adjective

formidable m or f (masculine and feminine plural formidables)

1. formidable

Derived terms

• formidablement

Further reading

• “formidable”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “formidable”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “formidable” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “formidable”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

French

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin formīdābilis (“formidable, terrible”), from formīdō (“fear, dread”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔʁ.mi.dabl/

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

formidable (plural formidables)

1. (dated or literary) fearsome
2. fantastic, tremendous

Derived terms

• formidablement

Further reading

• “formidable”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Norwegian Bokmål

Adjective

formidable

1. definite singular of formidabel
2. plural of formidabel

Norwegian Nynorsk

Adjective

formidable

1. definite singular of formidabel
2. plural of formidabel

Occitan

Etymology

From Latin formīdābilis.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Béarn):

  (file)

Adjective

formidable m (feminine singular formidabla, masculine plural formidables, feminine plural formidablas)

1. formidable

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin formidābilis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /foɾmiˈdable/ [foɾ.miˈð̞a.β̞le]
• Rhymes: -able
• Syllabification: for‧mi‧da‧ble

Adjective

formidable m or f (masculine and feminine plural formidables)

1. formidable
2. great, fantastic

   Synonyms: genial, fantástico

3. tremendous

   Synonym: tremendo

Derived terms

• formidablemente

Further reading

• “formidable”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025