prodigy
noun
Did you know?
Is a prodigy a genius or a monster - or both? Nowadays, it's the talent that shines through, but back in the 15th century the word's meaning was more strongly influenced by that of its Latin ancestor, prodigium, meaning "omen" or "monster." Back then, a prodigy could be any strange or weird thing that might be an omen of things to come. Even in modern English, the word sometimes refers to an extraordinary deed or accomplishment. P.G. Wodehouse used that sense when he described how a character named Pongo Twistleton was "performing prodigies with the [billiard] cue."
Examples of prodigy in a Sentence
Nelson Espinal, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 June 2025
There’s a fear of overloading the prodigy, who played 55 games in 2024/2025 and 50 games in the campaign before that, with Ansu Fati’s fall from grace a cautionary tale of putting too many minutes in young legs.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 24 June 2025
The new Disney+ streaming show centers around Riri Williams, a child prodigy who enrolls in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at age 15.
—Ken Makin, Christian Science Monitor, 23 June 2025
With college coaches following the pairing, Soong lived up to his billing as a prodigy while Jones strengthened his reputation by delivering his own special performance.
—Dan Albano, Oc Register, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for prodigy
Cite this Entry
“Prodigy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prodigy. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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prodigy
noun
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