monster

USMON-stur/ˈmɑnstɚ/UKMON-stuh/ˈmɒnstə(ɹ)/

15 meanings of monster

1
scary creaturenouncountable
A strange, often big and scary creature from stories or films. Some are friendly or funny.
Like the scary creatures in fairy tales and movies.
The little girl drew a friendly green monster with three eyes.
The children hid behind the sofa during the monster movie.
Similarbeast, creature
Note
2
wicked personnouncountable
A very cruel person who does terrible things to others.
The man who hurt those animals is a real monster.
Only a monster would treat children that way.
UsagePeople can call themselves or others a monster as a joke. Used seriously, it is a harsh insult.
Similarbeast, fiend, brute, ogre
Oppositesaint
Note
3
game enemynouncountable
An enemy in a game that players fight, run by the game itself rather than by another player.
Like the bad guys you fight in a video game.
We had to beat three monsters to reach the next level.
I lost all my health fighting the last monster in the game.
Similarenemy, mob
Note
4
adjectivecolloquial
Extremely large, bigger than you would expect.
They threw a monster party for her birthday.
We faced a monster wave at the beach.
UsagePut it before a noun: a monster truck.
Similargigantic, monstrous
Oppositetiny, minuscule
Note
5
nouncolloquialcountable
A thing that is much bigger than usual.
Like finding a strawberry as big as your fist.
That pumpkin is a real monster. It barely fits on the table.
They caught a monster of a fish in the lake.
UsageSay a monster of a fish: a very big fish.
Similargiant, behemoth, whopper, colossus
6
excellentadjectivecolloquial
Very good or really great.
Our goalie had a monster game and stopped every single shot.
The rookie had a monster season and won player of the year.
Similarbrilliant, excellent, superb, outstanding, great
Note
7
naughty childnounfigurativelyhumorouscountable
A person, especially a child, who behaves very badly.
Her little brother is a real monster when he doesn't get his way.
The twins turned into little monsters the moment their parents left.
UsagePeople often say little monsters about naughty kids.
Similarbrat, terror, horror, devil
Oppositeangel
8
nouncolloquialcountable
A person who is amazingly good at something.
That kid is a monster at math. He solves problems in seconds.
She's a monster on the guitar.
UsageSay a monster at something: very, very good at it.
Similargenius, master, virtuoso, phenomenon
Note

Less common meanings

9
act brutallyverbintransitive
To act cruelly and frighten the people around you.
The interrogators asked members of the 377th Military Police Company to help them with monstering, and the MPs complied.
2010, Joshua E. S. Phillips, None of Us Were Like This Before: American Soldiers and TortureHere, monstering means treating people cruelly to scare them.
Similarbully
Note
10
paint as evilverbtransitive
To treat or describe someone as evil and cruel.
Her old enemies monstered her online, calling her cruel and wicked.
The papers monstered him, painting a shy man as a cruel villain.
UsageOften be monstered: be shown as evil.
Similardemonize, vilify, pillory, smear
Oppositeglorify, lionize
Note
11
scoldverbcolloquialBritishtransitive
To tell someone off in an angry way.
Don't monster me just because I was late.
The coach monstered the team for their lazy performance.
Similarberate, scold, rebuke, lambaste
Oppositepraise, commend
Note
12
pesterverbAustraliatransitive
To keep bothering someone, or to beat or overpower them, as in sport.
The kids always monster their dad for ice cream after school.
Stop monstering me! I'll clean my room after lunch.
Similarharass, pester, hound, badger, hassle
Note
13
play side rolesverbUKintransitive
In a live action game, to play the side characters that the organizers tell you to play.
This weekend I monstered at a live role-playing game, playing orcs and bandits.
When you monster at a LARP, the organizers tell you which characters to play.
Note
14
nounarchaic
An animal or person born with a badly misshapen body.
The old farmer believed the two-headed calf was a monster sent to warn him.
"Periodically, storms would bring the creeping death to the valley - drifting clouds of radio-active dust - and men would sicken and die and women give birth to monsters."
1957, Sydney J. Bounds, The Robot BrainsHere, monsters means babies born badly deformed.
Note
15
disabled person (insult)nounoffensivecountable
A cruel and offensive word for a person with a disability.
The other kids cruelly called him a monster because he used a wheelchair.
A stranger stared at her disabled brother and cruelly called him a monster.
UsageSay person with a disability instead.
Note

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of monster apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Latin monstrum, a strange sign or warning from the gods, from monere, "to warn."

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

Monster ultimately derives from Latin monstrum. en.wiktionary.org
Latin monstrum denotes a divine sign or warning. en.wiktionary.org
Monstrum derives from the verb monere. en.wiktionary.org
Monere means to warn. en.wiktionary.org