monsters
|mon-sters|
🇺🇸
/ˈmɑn.stɚz/
🇬🇧
/ˈmɒn.stəz/
(monster)
frightening creature
Etymology
'monster' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'monstrum', where 'monere' meant 'to warn' (or 'to show').
'monster' changed from Latin 'monstrum' into Old French 'monstre', and eventually became the modern English word 'monster' through Middle English.
Initially, it meant 'an omen' or 'a sign (often of divine warning)', but over time it evolved into its current meaning of 'a large, frightening creature' and figuratively 'a cruel or inhuman person'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 2
large, frightening, imaginary creatures often appearing in stories and folklore.
Children were afraid of the monsters in the closet.
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Noun 3
people (or persons) who behave in a cruel, immoral, or extremely shocking way; figurative use.
People called the warlords monsters for what they had done.
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Noun 4
informal: very large, powerful, or effective things or machines (e.g., a 'monster' of an engine).
Those speakers are monsters — they shake the whole room.
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Verb 1
third-person singular present of 'monster' (to treat or depict as a monster).
The press often monsters politicians to attract attention.
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Last updated: 2025/11/02 08:25