mon·ster
ˈmän(t)-stər 
plural monsters
1
a
: an animal of strange or terrifying shape
a mythical monster
a sea monster
… visualize this scaleless monster, eight or nine feet long, sprawling in the shade by the side of the mud pools …—
W. E. Swinton
W. E. Swinton
b
: one unusually large for its kind
That truck is a monster.
That's why I was born in my grandmother's house—a grand, brick Federal monster of a house.—John Irving
John Irving2
a
: an animal or plant of abnormal form or structure
b
: one who deviates from normal or acceptable behavior or character
an immoral monster
3
: a threatening force
the same monster—Destiny … that rolls every civilization to doom—W. L. Sullivan
W. L. Sullivan4
: something monstrous
especially
: a person of unnatural or extreme ugliness, deformity, wickedness, or cruelty
a cruel monster of a father
5
: one that is highly successful
That movie was a monster at the box office.
: enormous or impressive especially in size, extent, or numbers
Synonyms
Noun
Adjective
- astronomical
- astronomic
- Brobdingnagian
- bumper
- colossal
- cosmic
- cosmical
- cyclopean
- elephantine
- enormous
- galactic
- gargantuan
- giant
- gigantesque
- gigantic
- grand
- herculean
- heroic
- heroical
- Himalayan
- huge
- humongous
- humungous
- immense
- jumbo
- king-size
- king-sized
- leviathan
- mammoth
- massive
- mega
- mighty
- monstrous
- monumental
- mountainous
- oceanic
- pharaonic
- planetary
- prodigious
- super
- super-duper
- supersize
- supersized
- titanic
- tremendous
- vast
- vasty
- walloping
- whacking
- whopping
Examples of monster in a Sentence
Noun
That car is a monster.
Inflation has become an economic monster.
Adjective
The movie turned out to be a monster hit.
Recent Examples on the Web
Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 7 Dec. 2024
Families can hear all about classic ancient Greek myths which are filled with adventures of gods and goddesses, monsters, and heroes.
—Anna Halkidis, Parents, 6 Dec. 2024
B.j. Colangelo, Vulture, 6 Oct. 2024
Could Hurricane Helene impact Indiana? Tropical Storm Helene has been churning in the western Caribbean and could emerge into a potentially monster hurricane, warn forecasters.
—John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 24 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for monster 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Noun
The monsters are tall and impressively athletic-looking, with devil ears and animatronic snouts that snap like miniature crocodile jaws.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 7 Dec. 2024
Families can hear all about classic ancient Greek myths which are filled with adventures of gods and goddesses, monsters, and heroes.
—Anna Halkidis, Parents, 6 Dec. 2024
Adjective
Her strength is in creating atmosphere, a change of pace for a monster genre that frequently thrives on high-octane thrills.
—B.j. Colangelo, Vulture, 6 Oct. 2024
Could Hurricane Helene impact Indiana? Tropical Storm Helene has been churning in the western Caribbean and could emerge into a potentially monster hurricane, warn forecasters.
—John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 24 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for monster
Dictionary Entries Near monster
Cite this Entry
“Monster.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/monster. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
monster
1 of 2 noun
mon·ster
ˈmän(t)-stər
1
: an animal or plant of abnormal form or structure
2
: a strange or horrible creature
3
: something unusually large
4
: an extremely wicked or cruel person
monster
2 of 2 adjective
: very large : enormous
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