outrageous / enormous
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outrageous
Something so shocking, offensive, or scandalous that it is perceived as unacceptable or unbelievable. It describes an incident or behavior that strongly violates moral or social norms.
Es ist ungeheuerlich, wie er seine Mitarbeiter behandelt.
It is outrageous how he treats his employees.
enormous
Describing an extreme size or a huge extent; enormous. This meaning is rarer and is often replaced by 'ungeheuer' (enormous).
Die Renovierungskosten erreichten eine ungeheuerliche Summe.
The renovation costs reached an enormous sum.
The word is derived from 'ungeheuer' (monstrous or enormous). The ending '-lich' turns it into an adjective. 'Ungeheuerlich' therefore describes something that is monstrous or incomprehensible in its extent or nature.
Die Forderungen der Gegenseite waren einfach ungeheuerlich.
The opposing side's demands were simply outrageous.
To express outrage, 'ungeheuerlich' (outrageous) is very often used in the fixed structure 'Es ist ungeheuerlich, dass ...' (It is outrageous that ...) or 'Es ist ungeheuerlich, wie ...' (It is outrageous how ...). This is followed by a subordinate clause that describes the scandalous situation.
Es ist ungeheuerlich, dass niemand für den Fehler die Verantwortung übernimmt.
It is outrageous that no one is taking responsibility for the mistake.
In its meaning 'empörend' (outrageous), the word is often combined with nouns that describe an action or statement. Typical examples are: 'eine ungeheuerliche Behauptung' (an outrageous claim), 'ein ungeheuerlicher Vorwurf' (an outrageous accusation), 'ein ungeheuerlicher Skandal' (an outrageous scandal), or 'ungeheuerliches Verhalten' (outrageous behavior).
Die Zeitung deckte einen ungeheuerlichen Skandal in der Politik auf.
The newspaper uncovered an outrageous scandal in politics.
You can tell whether the meaning is 'empörend' (outrageous) or 'riesig' (enormous) from the noun. If it refers to moral behavior, e.g. 'Lüge' (lie) or 'Vorwurf' (accusation), it means 'outrageous'. If it refers to a measurable size, e.g. 'Summe' (sum) or 'Menge' (amount), it means 'enormous'.
Seine Aussage war eine ungeheuerliche Lüge.
His statement was an outrageous lie.
incredible
Unglaublich and ungeheuerlich can describe a shocking incident. Unglaublich mainly emphasizes that you can hardly believe what happened. Ungeheuerlich additionally expresses a strong moral judgment: the behavior is considered outrageous and unacceptable.
Es ist ungeheuerlich, dass der Mitarbeiter absichtlich vertrauliche Unterlagen veröffentlicht hat.
It is outrageous that the employee deliberately published confidential documents.
Es ist unglaublich, dass der Mitarbeiter alle vertraulichen Unterlagen veröffentlicht hat.
It is incredible that the employee published all the confidential documents.
