terrific

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Extremely good; excellent.

   She's a terrific tennis player.

2. 2
   adj

   Very great or intense.

   The car came round the bend at a terrific speed.

From French terrifique, and its source, Latin terrificus (“terrifying”), from terrēre (“to frighten, terrify”) + -ficus, related to facere (“to make”). By surface analysis, terrify + -ic. The sense of excellent or amazing is an ameliorative semantic shift from the original sense of terrifying. Compare similar semantic development in sick and wicked.

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