monstruous

English

Etymology

From Middle English monstruous, from Old French monstrueuse, monstrüos, from Latin mōnstrōsus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɒnstɹʊəs/

Adjective

monstruous (comparative more monstruous, superlative most monstruous)

1. (now rare) Monstrous. [from 15th c.]
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, VI.7:

     For he was sterne and terrible by nature, […] And rather like a Gyant monstruous […].

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Middle English

Alternative forms

• moustruous, monstrous, monstruows, monstrows

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French monstrueuse, borrowed itself from Latin mōnstruōsus, mōnstrōsus; equivalent to monstre +‎ -ous.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɔnsˈtriu̯uːs/, /mɔnsˈtruːs/

Adjective

monstruous

1. Misshapen, grotesque; of unnatural form or appearance.
2. (rare) Monstrous, terrifying, fear-inducing.

Related terms

• monstruous

Descendants

• English: monstrous, monstruous
• Scots: monsterous

References

• “monstruǒus (adj.)”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-10-04.