as in whale
something or someone that is unusually large and powerful
mom-and-pop stores just can't compete with these mastodons of retailing
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Recent Examples of mastodon
The frieze, estimated to be about 12,500 years old, depicts massive ice age beasts thought to have once roamed South America, including mastodons and ground sloths the size of a car.
—
Laura Bassett, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2025
Guests can take a boat tour to learn more about the area’s history — which stretches back thousands of years to early Native Americans and mastodons — or stay overnight in the Wakulla Springs Lodge, which dates back to 1937.
—Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Aug. 2025
The landmass used to host multiple forms of mammoths, mastodons, giant ground sloths, enormous armadillos, multiple species of sabercat, huge bison, dire wolves and many more large creatures that formed ancient ecosystems unlike anything on our planet today.
—Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 July 2025
Researchers think the wide-open balds were created by grazing animals, first by mastodons and woolly mammoths, and later by deer and elk.
—Elisabeth Kwak-Hefferan, Outside Online, 6 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for mastodon
Laura Bassett, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Aug. 2025
Guests can take a boat tour to learn more about the area’s history — which stretches back thousands of years to early Native Americans and mastodons — or stay overnight in the Wakulla Springs Lodge, which dates back to 1937.
—Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Aug. 2025
The landmass used to host multiple forms of mammoths, mastodons, giant ground sloths, enormous armadillos, multiple species of sabercat, huge bison, dire wolves and many more large creatures that formed ancient ecosystems unlike anything on our planet today.
—Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 July 2025
Researchers think the wide-open balds were created by grazing animals, first by mastodons and woolly mammoths, and later by deer and elk.
—Elisabeth Kwak-Hefferan, Outside Online, 6 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for mastodon
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mastodon
Noun
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Guests can enjoy a variety of diversions, from sound baths to snorkeling and whale-watching.—
John Bowe,
Travel + Leisure,
1 Feb. 2026
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SeaWorld whale trainer Dawn Brancheau, 40, dies after an orca named Tilikum pulls her into the water after a Dine With Shamu show.—
Dewayne Bevil,
The Orlando Sentinel,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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An article in The Conversation described how some dinosaurs walked on sandy, inter-tidal channel bars, while the feet of others sank into soft mud forming the bed of the channel.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Feb. 2026
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The Blueprint is a dinosaur from a different era.—
Chris Roemer,
Baltimore Sun,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
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There’s a growing sense that repeated EU efforts to rein in tech giants such as Google with blockbuster antitrust fines and sweeping digital rule books haven’t done much to curb their dominance.—
Kelvin Chan,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2026
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The fast-food giant has teamed with Paramount Caviar for the kits.—
Chad Murphy,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Catrina Bell loves to write sweetie pie monsters who bring the heat.—
Meg Miller,
Austin American Statesman,
31 Jan. 2026
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Essie Davis plays Amelia, who struggles to raise her 6-year-old son, Sam (Noah Wiseman), as he's tormented by the titular humanoid storybook monster.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Savvy ancestors As mammoths and elephants were rare in prehistoric England, the discovery highlights the advanced cognitive skills of early humans.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Jan. 2026
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Using chemical clues from Neanderthal bones, researchers have placed the species at the top of the food chain, alongside apex predators like lions – feasting on big animals such as mammoths or bison.—
Jay Kakade
December 31,
New Atlas,
31 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Asian elephants face mounting threats from habitat loss, disease and human-elephant conflict, making successful live births increasingly important.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
4 Feb. 2026
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Their populations are threatened by habitat loss, human-elephant conflict, and poaching, the World Wildlife Fund, one of the world's leading conservation organizations, stated on its website.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mastodon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mastodon. Accessed 7 Feb. 2026.
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