-zilla

1. a combining form extracted from Godzilla, occurring in compounds that describe a fearsome, extreme, overbearing, or monstrous person or thing:

   super wealthy, competitive momzillas.

Example Sentences

Among all the monsters Godzilla fights in the movie, the battle with Zilla is the shortest.

From The Daily Beast

And Lamech toke hym two wyves: the one was called Ada/ and the other Zilla.

From Project Gutenberg

Old Ebbits looked at me in childlike wonder, while Zilla sneered openly at the absurdity of my question.

From Project Gutenberg

I shook my head in token of my ignorance, and Ebbits looked compassion at me, while Zilla snorted her customary contempt.

From Project Gutenberg

“And always did he remember the salt lake as big as the sky and the country under the sun where there is no snow,” quoth Zilla.

From Project Gutenberg

He scowled at Zilla, whose withered lips were again writhing into speech, and compelled her to silence.

From Project Gutenberg

Words That Use -zilla

What does -zilla mean?

The combining form –zilla is used like a suffix meaning “monster.” It is very occasionally used in informal or slang terms. The suffix –zilla is often pejorative or insulting—and, because it is often used in reference to women, sexist.

The form –zilla comes from the name Godzilla, an Anglicized version of Japanese Gojira, the name given to the terrifying sea monster that destroys villages and fights giant moths. Learn what Gojira means in Japanese at our entry for Godzilla.

Examples of -zilla

An example of an informal (and often disparaging) word you may have encountered that features –zilla is bridezilla, “a soon-to-be bride who is overly involved with the details of her wedding and becomes extremely self-centered, demanding, or otherwise difficult to tolerate.”

As we have seen, –zilla means “monster.” The first part of the word, bride–, refers to a recently married or soon-to-be-married woman. Bridezilla literally means “monster bride.”

What are some words that use the combining form –zilla?

• groomzilla
• momzilla
• promzilla

What are some other forms that –zilla may be commonly confused with?

• -zoa
• -zygous