Staggering means so great that it is hard to take in. A staggering sum, staggering losses, staggeringly good.
It is reserved for scale — staggering describes numbers, costs and distances far more often than qualities. The image is of being knocked off balance, from the verb meaning to walk unsteadily. Note staggering also means arranging things at different times, which is the same word: staggered start times, staggered shifts.
1adjectivestaggeringSo great that it is hard to take in.
“The new stadium cost a staggering amount of money, far more than anyone expected.”
synonyms: astonishing, enormous
2nounarrangingArranging things to start at different times.
“The staggering of lunch breaks means the canteen never gets too crowded.”
staggering is a quality of overwhelming scale.
Practised in Sharper Adjectives