monster

noun mon·ster \ ˈmän(t)-stər \

|Updated on: 22 Jun 2018

Examples: monster in a Sentence

Definition of monster

1 a : an animal or plant of abnormal form or structure

a mythical monster

a sea monster

b : one who deviates from normal or acceptable behavior or character

an immoral monster

2 : a threatening force

the same monster — Destiny … that rolls every civilization to doom
—W. L. Sullivan

3 a : an animal of strange or terrifying shape

visualize this scaleless monster, eight or nine feet long, sprawling in the shade by the side of the mud pools
—W. E. Swinton

b : one unusually large for its kind

That truck is a monster.

4 : something monstrous; especially : a person of unnatural or extreme ugliness, deformity, wickedness, or cruelty

His father was a monster who beat his children for no reason.

5 : one that is highly successful

That movie was a monster at the box office.

See monster defined for English-language learners

See monster defined for kids

Examples of monster in a Sentence

That car is a monster.
Inflation has become an economic monster.

Recent Examples of monster from the Web

In it, a monster called Water Eater makes scary noises.

— samuel axon, Ars Technica, "Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit," 15 June 2018
And there's an invisible monster and also Léa Seydoux?

— joshua rivera, GQ, "Every Video Game Worth Paying Attention to from E3 2018," 14 June 2018
What makes someone who looks and acts like the rest of us most of the time, suddenly turn into a monster?

— chris cuomo, CNN, "Chris Cuomo: What I learned about evil from America's notorious criminals," 14 June 2018
The first paragraph of Baylson’s ruling moves quickly from Shakespeare to Homer, referring to Scylla and Charybdis, two monsters encountered by Odysseus in Book XII of the Odyssey.

— walt hunter, The Atlantic, "When Hamlet Starts Showing Up in Federal Court," 13 June 2018
Plus, people in the gray area between mensch and monster – the ones with histories of warmth and decency who have lately veered into anger - need more loving people in their lives, not fewer.

— carolyn hax, Detroit Free Press, "Best friend wants to speak up about the way pal treats her husband," 13 June 2018
Ogopogo Brewing The newest of the new breweries in Los Angeles, Ogopogo (the palindromic name references a Nessy-like Canadian lake monster) just opened its doors this month.

— john verive, Los Angeles Magazine, "10 New L.A. Breweries That Should Be on Your Beer Week Radar," 11 June 2018
Who needs a monster when history haunts enough on its own?

— chicago tribune staff, chicagotribune.com, "From Joyce Carol Oates to 'Caddyshack' and the Cubs, Printers Row Lit Fest hit a thoughtful groove," 9 June 2018
Her work digging up toothy sea monsters around the English countryside has been memorialized in book-length biographies, novels—and even a 2018 film.

— brian switek, Smithsonian, "The Many Ways Women Get Left Out of Paleontology," 8 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'monster.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of monster

Middle English monstre, from Anglo-French, from Latin monstrum omen, monster, from monēre to warn — more at mind

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

monster Synonyms

monster

adjective

Definition of monster

: enormous or impressive especially in size, extent, or numbers

See monster defined for English-language learners

Examples of monster in a Sentence

The movie turned out to be a monster hit.

Origin and Etymology of monster

see ¹monster

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1837

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

monster Synonyms

Synonyms

astronomical (also astronomic), bumper, colossal, cosmic (also cosmical), elephantine, enormous, galactic, gargantuan, giant, gigantic, grand, herculean, heroic (also heroical), huge, humongous (also humungous), immense, jumbo, king-size (or king-sized), leviathan, mammoth, massive, mega, mighty, monstrous, monumental, mountainous, oceanic, planetary, prodigious, super, supersize, supersized, titanic, tremendous, vast, vasty, walloping, whacking, whopping;

Antonyms

bantam, bitty, diminutive, infinitesimal, little bitty, micro, microminiature, microscopic (also microscopical), midget, miniature, minuscule, minute, pocket, pygmy, teensy, teensy-weensy, teeny, teeny-weeny, tiny, wee;

Near Antonyms

little, mini, petite, pint-size (or pint-sized), puny, small, smallish, undersized (also undersize);

dinky, dwarfish, half-pint;

august, formidable, grandiose, imposing, lofty, majestic;

cavernous, monolithic, overwhelming, staggering, stupendous, towering;

boundless, immeasurable, infinite;

MONSTER Defined for English Language Learners

monster

noun

Definition of monster for English Language Learners

: a strange or horrible imaginary creature
: something that is extremely or unusually large
: a powerful person or thing that cannot be controlled and that causes many problems