SPECTACULAR

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does spectacular mean? 

• SPECTACULAR (noun)
  The noun SPECTACULAR has 1 sense:

1. a lavishly produced performance

  Familiarity information: SPECTACULAR used as a noun is very rare.

• SPECTACULAR (adjective)
  The adjective SPECTACULAR has 3 senses:

1. sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect

2. characteristic of spectacles or drama

3. having a quality that thrusts itself into attention

  Familiarity information: SPECTACULAR used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SPECTACULAR (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A lavishly produced performance

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Context example:

they put on a Christmas spectacular

Hypernyms ("spectacular" is a kind of...):

performance; public presentation (a dramatic or musical entertainment)

• SPECTACULAR (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect

Synonyms:

dramatic; spectacular; striking

Context example:

his striking good looks always created a sensation

Similar:

impressive (making a strong or vivid impression)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Characteristic of spectacles or drama

Context example:

spectacular dives from the cliff

Similar:

dramatic (suitable to or characteristic of drama)

Derivation:

spectacle (an elaborate and remarkable display on a lavish scale)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Having a quality that thrusts itself into attention

Synonyms:

outstanding; prominent; salient; spectacular; striking

Context example:

a striking resemblance between parent and child

Similar:

conspicuous (obvious to the eye or mind)

Derivation:

spectacle (something or someone seen (especially a notable or unusual sight))

 Context examples 

Wow, what a spectacular day for both love and career!

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

Stellar explosions are most often associated with supernovae, the spectacular deaths of stars.

(Dramatic Stellar Fireworks of Star Birth, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

At 3 a.m. on March 3, 2015, Villarrica, one of Chile's most active, blew its top in a spectacular fire fountain.

(Listen to the pulse of an erupting volcano, NSF)

Until the latest spectacular eruption opened up fissures on the flank of the volcano, Kīlauea volcano in Hawaii held a vast lava lake in its summit crater.

(Size matters: if you are a bubble of volcanic gas, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

OmegaCAM — the wide-field optical camera on ESO’s VLT Survey Telescope (VST) — has captured the spectacular Orion Nebula and its associated cluster of young stars in great detail, producing a beautiful new image.

(A Tale of Three Stellar Cities, ESO)

Stellar explosions are most often associated with supernovae, the spectacular deaths of stars.

(ALMA Captures Dramatic Stellar Fireworks, ESO)

These jets then spout from the black hole in a spectacular galactic fountain.

(ALMA and MUSE Detect Galactic Fountain, ESO)

In its lowest-altitude mapping orbit, at a distance of 240 miles (385 kilometers) from Ceres, Dawn has provided scientists with spectacular views of the dwarf planet.

(New Ceres Images Show Bright Craters, NASA)

Did she love the heroic and the spectacular for its own noble sake, or was it for the glory which might, without effort or sacrifice, be reflected upon herself?

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Since so few fossils have been discovered from that age, the sea monster is a spectacular find.

(Sea Monster Swam Oceans 170 Million Years Ago, Voanews)