Definition of "epic" []

• An extended narrative poem in elevated or dignified language, celebrating the feats of a legendary or traditional hero. (noun)
• A literary or dramatic composition that resembles an extended narrative poem celebrating heroic feats. (noun)
• A series of events considered appropriate to an epic: the epic of the Old West. (noun)
• Of, constituting, having to do with, or suggestive of a literary epic: an epic poem. (adjective)
• Surpassing the usual or ordinary, particularly in scope or size: "A vast musical panorama . . . it requires an epic musical understanding to do it justice” ( Tim Page). (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "That said, West deliberately takes his time building up to the dark arts activities not so subtly parlayed in the title epic-so-as-to-be-a-dash-humorous."
• "I don't understand why you conceptualizing the term epic necessarily means you have to compare your definition to someone else's."
• "It is best perhaps to use the term epic, and to qualify the term by explanation."