behemoth

noun

be·​he·​moth bi-ˈhē-məth  ˈbē-ə-məth 

-ˌmäth,

-ˌmȯth

often attributive

1

often capitalized religion : a mighty animal described in Job 40:15–24 as an example of the power of God

2

: something of monstrous size, power, or appearance

a behemoth truck

Did you know?

In the biblical book of Job, Behemoth is the name of a powerful grass-eating, river-dwelling beast with bones likened to bronze pipes and limbs likened to iron bars. Scholars have speculated that the biblical creature was inspired by the hippopotamus, but details about the creature’s exact nature are vague. The word first passed from Hebrew into Latin, where, according to 15th century English poet and monk John Lydgate it referred to "a beast rude full of cursednesse." In modern English, behemoth mostly functions as an evocative term for something of monstrous size, power, or appearance.

Synonyms

• blockbuster
• colossus
• dinosaur
• dreadnought
• elephant
• giant
• Goliath
• jumbo
• leviathan
• mammoth
• mastodon
• monster
• titan
• whale
• whopper

Examples of behemoth in a Sentence

the newest SUV is a gas-guzzling behemoth that doesn't even fit in a standard parking space

Recent Examples on the Web

The faces behind tech behemoths like Meta, Alphabet, Oracle, Amazon, Nvidia and Dell dominate as this year’s top winners. —Connor Greene, Forbes, 21 Dec. 2024

The company previously revealed a behemoth live + same-day audience across CBS and eight cable networks for the premiere, but the finale viewership gives a much better indication of just how big the weekly audience for the series was, since the rest of the episodes only aired on two networks. —Katie Campione, Deadline, 17 Dec. 2024

That is the kind of plan the Cubs actually might pursue if owner Tom Ricketts were operating the team as a big-market behemoth rather than an efficient Midwest bank. —Ken Rosenthal, The Athletic, 13 Dec. 2024

The shift in philosophy began last year when the Padres trimmed nearly $100 million off their payroll yet won 11 more games than in 2023 and gamely maintained their rivalry with the Chavez Ravine behemoth, falling a victory short in the National League Division Series. —Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Late Latin, from Hebrew bĕhēmōth

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

behemoth

noun

be·​he·​moth bi-ˈhē-məth  ˈbē-ə-ˌməth 

-ˌmäth,

-ˌmȯth

1

often capitalized : an animal described in the Bible that is probably the hippopotamus

2

: something of monstrous size or power