Fantastic, Fabulous, Terrific, Brilliant, Tremendous, Awesome, Wicked
They all work as informal praise. But they are not interchangeable in every context. Each word carries its own flavor: glamour, scale, region, age, or even a hidden second meaning. Here’s the practical guide.
Fantastic
Fantastic is the safest all-rounder. It means “extremely good” in almost any informal situation: a fantastic meal, a fantastic opportunity, You did a fantastic job.
It originally relates to fantasy and the unreal, so it can still mean “improbable” or “unreal”—but in everyday praise, it’s simply a strong, friendly “very good.”
- She gave a fantastic presentation—clear, confident, and well organized.
- The concert was fantastic.
Fabulous
Fabulous means “excellent,” but it often adds a whiff of glamour, style, or drama. A fabulous dress, a fabulous party, a fabulous holiday—it sounds more fashionable and expressive than plain fantastic.
It comes from “fable,” so literally it can mean “fable-like” or “incredible,” but in modern informal use it’s mostly stylish praise.
- The garden looks fabulous in spring.
- The design is simple and fabulous.
Terrific
Terrific is a perfectly good “very good”: a terrific idea, a terrific performance. But it can sound slightly older or less trendy than awesome or brilliant.
The catch: terrific can still mean “terrifying” or “very bad” in certain phrases, especially weather or disasters—a terrific storm, a terrific explosion. Context usually makes it clear.
- We had a terrific time at dinner.
- She’s a terrific teacher.
Brilliant
This is a big one for regional difference.
In UK English, brilliant is extremely common informal praise meaning “excellent”: “Brilliant!”, a brilliant idea, That’s brilliant.
In US English, brilliant more often means “very intelligent” or “clever”: a brilliant scientist, a brilliant solution.
It also has the literal meaning “very bright”—brilliant sunshine.
- The film was brilliant.
- That was a brilliant solution.
Tremendous
Tremendous means “excellent,” but it often carries a sense of size, scale, or force. A tremendous success, a tremendous amount of work, a tremendous effort—it feels bigger and slightly more formal than fantastic.
It can also simply mean “huge”: a tremendous crowd.
- The team made a tremendous effort.
- The storm caused tremendous damage.
Awesome
Awesome originally meant “inspiring awe.” Today, in informal English, it’s usually just a slangy “excellent”: an awesome film, That’s awesome!
It is the most informal word on this list and is especially associated with younger speakers and US English. Some people find it overused, so it may not suit very formal writing.
- Your new bike is awesome.
- Here is awesome sunset tonight.
Wicked
Wicked is the odd one out. Its core meaning is “evil” or “morally bad”: a wicked plan, a wicked stepmother.
But in UK slang, especially among younger speakers, wicked means “excellent” or “cool”: “That’s wicked!”, a wicked guitar riff.
So context and region are everything. Said with the right tone in the UK, it’s praise. In other contexts, it’s a moral judgement.
- Your new shoes are wicked.
- That was a wicked act.
When to use them:
Fantastic
“Fantastic” works well for warm, general praise because it’s emphatic and friendly but still standard English—widely understood and not tied to a particular region or slang scene.
- You did a fantastic job on that report.
Fabulous
Use “fabulous” when the praise has a bit of flair—style, appearance, atmosphere, or personality. It is warm and enthusiastic, but it sounds more expressive and stylish than plain “good.”
- You look fabulous tonight.
- He is friendly and fabulous.
Terrific
Use terrific when you want friendly, slightly old-fashioned informal praise—or you’re describing something enormous and dramatic.
Use terrific for something warm and friendly, but warmly old-fashioned and informal
- You did a terrific job.
- We had a terrific job.
Use terrific when something is very great in size, force, or intensity-often used in more formal or literary writing.
- A terrific storm hit the coast.
Brilliant
Brilliant is used when you’re in the UK and want a natural “excellent!”—or you’re praising someone’s intelligence in any variety of English.
In the UK, brilliant is used as a natural way to say "excellent!"
- That's a brilliant idea.
Brilliant is used to praise someone's intelligence.
- He’s brilliant at math.
Tremendous
Tremendous is used when you want praise with a sense of scale—something impressive, large, or demanding. "Tremendous” adds a sense of scale to praise. It suggests something is impressive because it is large, strong, or demanding.
- She showed tremendous courage.
- The team made a tremendous effort.
Awesome
Use “awesome” for casual, enthusiastic, youthful praise—especially in speech, texts, and social media. It means impressive / excellent / very cool.
- Your new bike is awesome.
- This playlist is awesome.
Wicked
Wicked is used when you’re using UK slang and the tone is clearly enthusiastic—or you actually mean “evil.”
- In UK slang wicked is used to mean excellent or cool.
That is wicked = That's excellent.
- Your new shoes are wicked.” = Your new shoes are really cool.
Use wicked when you really mean evil or morally bad.
- The wicked witch cast a spell.
- That was a wicked act.
In a nutshell
Fantastic is used to describe something that is extremely good.
Fabulous is used to describe something excellent, often something stylish or glamorous.
Terrific is used to mean “very good.” It is informal and slightly old-fashioned.
Brilliant is used to mean “excellent,” especially in the UK, and “very smart” in any variety of English.
Tremendous is used to describe something impressive because of its scale—very large, strong, or demanding.
Awesome is used for casual, enthusiastic praise meaning “excellent,” “impressive,” or “very cool”—especially in speech, texts, and social media.
In UK slang, “wicked” means “excellent” or “cool,” but literally it means “evil.”
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