Fabulous: Definition, Usage & Common Mistakes

Meaning 1：wonderful (fabulous)

fabulous 🔊

/ˈfæbjələs/

adj.

So good that it's hard to believe, wonderful, amazing.

Fabulous illustrated by a joyful person celebrating at a vibrant amusement park.

wonderful 🔊

➕

/ˈwʌndəf(ə)l/

adj.

An emphatic, informal adjective used to describe something that is extraordinarily good, impressive, or delightful.

📁 Category：Entertainment & Sports 🔖 Level：初级

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'fabula' (story, tale) + '-ous' (full of). Literally 'full of story'.

💡 Mnemonic

Fab-U-lous! Feels like a fabulous story, too good to be true.

📖 Example

We had a fabulous time at the amusement park, laughing and riding all the roller coasters. 🔊 We had a wonderful time at the amusement park, laughing and riding all the roller coasters.

🔗 Collocations

look fabulous – to appear extremely attractive or stylish

fabulous wealth – an astonishingly large amount of money or riches

fabulous performance – an exceptionally good show or act

🔄 Synonyms

amazing (adj.) – Causing great surprise or wonder; extremely impressive.

fantastic (adj.) – Extraordinarily good or attractive.

superb (adj.) – Excellent, of the highest quality.

🚫 Antonyms

awful (adj.) – Very bad or unpleasant.

terrible (adj.) – Extremely bad or serious.

🌱 Derivatives

fabulously (adv.) – In an extremely good or impressive manner.

📖 Cultural Story

Derived from Latin 'fabula', meaning 'a story, tale'. In ancient times, fabulous things belonged to fable or myth—so extraordinary they seemed unreal. By the 17th century, it gained its modern meaning of 'incredibly good'.