monstrosity

noun

mon·​stros·​i·​ty män-ˈsträ-sə-tē 

plural monstrosities

1

a

: a malformation of a plant or animal

b

: something deviating from the normal : freak

2

: the quality or state of being monstrous

the monstrosity of the tsunami's devastation

3

a

: an object of great and often frightening size, force, or complexity

this monstrosity, the atomic bomb

b

: an excessively bad or shocking example

The new mall is an architectural monstrosity.

Synonyms

• abnormality
• anomaly
• freak
• monster

Examples of monstrosity in a Sentence

Did you see the new mall? It's a monstrosity.

any monstrosities born to the farm animals were sent to the agricultural college for study

Recent Examples on the Web

There are also signs that Culpeper has pulled back from the sort of housing policies that allowed ecological monstrosities of the sort occurring at Clevenger’s Corner (which was approved years ago). —Dana Milbank, Washington Post, 10 July 2024

Both are remarkable, as artists, and as people who build beautiful monstrosities in the desert. —Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 2 July 2024

When tech founder Sebastian and his girlfriend Lena move into the hyper-modern monstrosity next door, Mitty's drawn into their orbit. —Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 29 June 2024

By shedding ourselves of this monstrosity, America paved the way for its core values to guide us to become the greatest country in the world. —Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 19 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

monstrosity

noun

mon·​stros·​i·​ty män-ˈsträs-ət-ē 

plural monstrosities

1

: the condition of being monstrous

2

: something monstrous : monster