monotonous

adjective

mo·​not·​o·​nous mə-ˈnä-tə-nəs 

-ˈnät-nəs

1

: uttered or sounded in one unvarying tone : marked by a sameness of pitch and intensity

2

: tediously uniform or unvarying

monotonously adverb

monotonousness noun

Synonyms

• arid
• boring
• colorless
• drab
• dreary
• drudging
• dry
• dull
• dusty
• flat
• heavy
• ho-hum
• humdrum
• jading
• jejune
• leaden
• mind-numbing
• monochromatic
• numbing
• old
• pedestrian
• ponderous
• slow
• stale
• stodgy
• stuffy
• stupid
• tame
• tedious
• tiresome
• tiring
• uninteresting
• wearisome
• weary
• wearying

Examples of monotonous in a Sentence

Altogether, millions of mostly obscure entries in the public record offer details of a forced labor system of monotonous enormity. —Douglas A. Blackmon, Slavery By Another Name, 2008

At times, the grayness of the place was consumed by its own monotonous noise, of bars clanging, of inmates being led through the corridors, of guards yelling out orders … —Benjamin Weiser, New York Times Magazine, 6 Aug. 2000

The monotonous chant of the indoctrinated, ideologically armored from head to foot … —Philip Roth, American Pastoral, 1997

The crickets stridulated their everlasting monotonous meaningful note. —John Updike, The Witches of Eastwick, 1984

the lecturer's monotonous delivery threatened to put us to sleep

Recent Examples on the Web

The city’s turbulent 20th-century history is visible in the bullet holes on facades, the graffitied remains of the Berlin Wall and the monotonous residential blocks erected during the post-World War II reconstruction. —Valeriya Safronova, New York Times, 1 May 2025

Even the most dedicated runners will admit that the sport can get monotonous at times. —Jennifer Heimlich, SELF, 23 Apr. 2025

The repetitiveness of the game got monotonous at times, which left him unprepared for when things didn’t go according to plan. —Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2025

Best pals Honorio, Rafa, and Vicente, about to turn 20, dream of escaping their monotonous lives. —Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 17 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

— more at monotone entry 1 + -ous

Note: Oxford English Dictionary, third edition, takes the word as a direct borrowing from Greek monótonos, with the addition of the suffix -ous.

First Known Use

1776, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

monotonous

adjective

mo·​not·​o·​nous mə-ˈnät-ᵊn-əs 

-ˈnät-nəs

1

: uttered or sounded in one unchanging tone

2

: boring from being always the same

a monotonous task

monotonously adverb

monotonousness noun