monolith

noun

mono·​lith ˈmä-nə-ˌlith 

1

: a single great stone often in the form of an obelisk or column

A granite monolith stands at the center of the park.

2

: a massive structure

The 70-story monolith is one of Europe's tallest buildings.

3

: an organized whole that acts as a single unified powerful or influential force

The movie company grew into a monolith of the entertainment industry.

Examples of monolith in a Sentence

The new office building is a massive steel and concrete monolith.

The media monolith owns a number of networks.

Recent Examples on the Web

But the west London monolith has since rebuilt itself anew and is looking more like its old self of late. —Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Aug. 2025

The sky is velvet here, set against the hard line of the monoliths. —Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 29 Aug. 2025

The real showstopper, though, is the Black Hawk Statue, a 50-foot concrete monolith created by Lorado Taft in 1911. —Karthika Gupta, Travel + Leisure, 23 Aug. 2025

The famous Colorado amphitheater flanked by sandstone monoliths has hosted many big-name musicians, from The Beatles to Jimmy Buffett. —Zoey Thomas, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

French monolithe, from monolithe consisting of a single stone, from Latin monolithus, from Greek monolithos, from mon- + lithos stone

First Known Use

1836, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for monolith

• coppersmith
• hammersmith
• silversmith
• beckwith
• blacksmith
• forthwith
• herewith
• locksmith
• outwith
• therewith
• wherewith
• frith

Kids Definition

monolith

noun

mono·​lith ˈmän-ᵊl-ˌith 

1

: a single great stone often in the form of a monument or column

2

: something large and powerful (as a political organization) that is thought to function as a unified whole

monolithic

ˌmän-ᵊl-ˈith-ik

adjective