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
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
First Evidence Found from Mastodon Tusk Ancient Impact on Modern-Day Ecosystem
The loss of mastodons greatly reduced seed dispersal for several of these fruit-bearing species.
—Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 16 June 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
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
First Evidence Found from Mastodon Tusk Ancient Impact on Modern-Day Ecosystem
The loss of mastodons greatly reduced seed dispersal for several of these fruit-bearing species.
—Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 16 June 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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Lower- and no-alcohol beers are the new normal As whales and high-alcohol beers decline, they’re being replaced by lower-alcohol beers and, in some cases, no alcohol beers, which have surged in popularity for several years.—
Jay R. Brooks,
Mercury News,
9 Jan. 2026
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But for the population, which stands at 384 whales, to rebound from its substantial losses in the past decade, many more calves will need to be born.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
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In addition to the parks, Moab is home to myriad petroglyphs, seen along Hidden Valley Trail, and dinosaur tracks located within Mill Canyon.—
Evie Carrick,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Jan. 2026
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And if the sneakers themselves didn’t go heavy enough with the prehistoric theme, the shoebox is also fully decked out with a dinosaur motif which, when opened, is intended to look like a Tyrannosaurus opening its mouth.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The president said Thursday that the two mortgage giants under government conservatorship, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, have $200 billion in cash that will be used to make the mortgage bond purchases.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Jan. 2026
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An infusion of money and resources await Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospitals after health giant Hartford HealthCare purchased them from the private equity company Prospect Medical Holdings days ago.—
Livi Stanford,
Hartford Courant,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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In it, Oldham costumes up as a shaggy woodland monster, which—after a more nimble inhabitant seemingly swaps into the outfit—proceeds to engage a human in an elaborate dance routine.—
Jazz Monroe,
Pitchfork,
7 Jan. 2026
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That mentality has fueled a monster debut season for Porter County Conference leader Kouts (12-3, 4-1).—
Noah Poser,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Children’s Discovery Museum: A celebration 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 1 features sand painting with stencils, storytelling, giant skeleton puppets, and a calaveras procession led by Teatro Familia Aztlán that visits at Lupe, the museum’s 14,000-year-old muerto mammoth, along the way.—
Andrew Gilbert,
Mercury News,
22 Oct. 2025
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Humans have had an impact on biodiversity as far back as 130,000 years ago, with the disappearance of mammoths and giant sloths—and extinction has continued in our wake as the human race spread across the globe.—
Rachael O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Oct. 2025
Noun
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With some species variations, all sorts of wild animals, from small rodents to elephants, will consume alcohol, even to the point of drunkenness.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
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Other variants tile the lenses of insect eyes and form corky plate patterns in the elephant’s foot plant.—
Anirban Mukhopadhyay,
Scientific American,
5 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mastodon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mastodon. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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