Things that are described as grand make a big impression, whether for their impressive size or appearance (grand mountain scenery) or, moving from things to people, their majestic or dignified air (her manner is grand and regal). A synonym of grand, stately comes imbued with nobility and elegance, and so takes the grandness up a notch. Stately is defined as “majestic” or “imposing in magnificence or elegance,” as in the case of a stately home, or an abode that looks like it could belong to royalty. It’s also used less commonly to describe people that exude refinement, elegance, and decorum—sometimes to the point of seeming haughty, aloof, or overly formal.

A city is a large or important town, or, more specifically and in the United States, an incorporated municipality, usually governed by a mayor. The synonym metropolis is used of large, bustling cities, or of cities that are of particular importance, as seats of government or cultural centers. The word itself comes from Late Latin mētropolis, the see or center of authority of a metropolitan bishop, from Greek mētrópolis “a mother state or city,” as of an ancient Greek colony. If you are looking for the perfect word for an an even larger city, or an urban region that consists of several large cities and suburbs that adjoin each other, the even more fun-to-say synonym megalopolis may do the trick. 

The noun book is a general term for any work of fiction or nonfiction. But when the work in question is something as ponderous and time-consuming as War and Peace or Infinite Jest, the one-size-fits-all term book might feel insufficient. Tome is the synonym you’re looking for. A tome is an especially heavy, large, or learned book. Tome comes by way of Middle French from Latin tomus, meaning “a cut, slide, or bit” or “a piece of length of papyrus.” The Latin term is a borrowing of Greek tómos “a slice.” Tome entered English referring to a volume of a larger work, but nowadays tome is often used in a slightly humorous manner to emphasize the seriousness and importance of a work, especially in contrast to the ease (and possibly enjoyment) offered by more portable page-turners.