mammoth

noun

1. Any species of the extinct genus Mammuthus, of large, usually hairy, elephant-like mammals with long curved tusks and an inclined back, which became extinct with the last retreat of ice age glaciers during the late Pleistocene period, and are known from fossils, frozen carcasses, and Paleolithic cave paintings found in North America and Eurasia.

   “Maimanto, as they say a sea elephant which is never seene, but accordinge to the Samuites he workes himselfe under grownde and so they finde his teeth or homes or bones in Pechore and Nova Zemla of which they […]”

   “The Mammotovoy, which is dug out of the Earth in Siberia.”

   “The old Siberian Russians affirm that the Mammuth is very like the Elephant.”

2. (obsolete)A mastodon.

   “Many of our readers will remember the skeleton of the American mammoth, now the Mastodonton, being exhibited in London by Mr. Rembrandt Peale.”

3. (figuratively)Something very large of its kind.

   “The last load, as we Yankees say, was a "Mammoth": […] producing an aggregate of nearly twelve cords.”

   “That is a lot of ship, about the size of big tankers before they grew so rapidly to become supers, mammoths and oilbergs.”

4. A kind of large donkey.

   “Mammoths are taller than 54 inches. Each can carry up to 25% of its weight in combined tack, supplies, and rider.”

adj

1. Comparable to a mammoth in its size; very large, huge, gigantic.

   “I recieved [sic] from the persons to whom the inclosed is directed, a present of a quarter of a Mammoth-veal which at 115. days old weighed 438. lb.”

   “A baker in this city offers Mammoth bread for sale. We suppose that his gigantic loaves were baked at a Salt Lick, and perhaps […]”

   ““Ha! ha!” he proudly cried, “a fig / For this, your mammoth torso! / Just watch me while I grow as big / As you—or even more so!””

   ““[…] The task is mammoth but not hopeless and slowly we keep things going until this transition period is past.””

   “The governor of the region said that all of the 13 missing were safe after a mammoth search and rescue operation.”