hefty

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈhɛfti/ UK /ˈhɛfti/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
large, heavy, and powerful; substantial in amount

They paid a hefty fee for the rush delivery.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · large, heavy, and powerful;... weighty heavy substantial bulky massive sizable

Opposites

light slight flimsy puny insubstantial

Word family

Derived forms heftilyheftiness

Related forms heft heave

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

hefty bonus
An unusually large extra payment in addition to normal earnings.

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Hefty began in the mid-19th century as a US dialect word formed from late Middle English heft, "the weight of someone." Heft came from Old English heave, which is also connected with heavy.

Etymology

From heft plus the adjective-forming suffix -y; heft probably derives from heave (Old English hebban 'to lift'), on the analogy of weft from weave.

hebban Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# hefty

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈhɛfti/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈhɛfti/

## Meanings
1. large, heavy, and powerful; substantial in amount

## Examples
- They paid a hefty fee for the rush delivery.

## Synonyms
- weighty
- heavy
- substantial
- bulky
- massive
- sizable

## Antonyms
- light
- slight
- flimsy
- puny
- insubstantial

## Derived Forms
- heftily
- heftiness

## Related Forms
- heft
- heave

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: hebban

## Etymology
From heft plus the adjective-forming suffix -y; heft probably derives from heave (Old English hebban 'to lift'), on the analogy of weft from weave.

## AI Etymology
Hefty comes from heft plus the adjective-forming suffix -y; heft probably derives from heave (Old English hebban 'to lift'), on the analogy of weft from weave. The suffix is part of the word's derivational shape, marking the final grammatical or semantic role while the base supplies the central meaning. As an adjective, it carries the sense "large, heavy, and powerful; substantial in amount", with the older formation still helping explain the modern use. Relevant historical forms include Old English hebban. Derivative forms include heftily, heftiness; related words include heft, heave.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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