noun
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an outrageous or ugly person or thing; monster
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the state or quality of being monstrous
Etymology
Origin of monstrosity
1545–55; < Late Latin mōnstrōsitās, equivalent to Latin mōnstrōs ( us ) monstrous + -itās -ity
Explanation
A monstrosity is something so hideous that you can hardly stand to look at it, like a zombie or an ugly modern building. A monster can certainly be described as a monstrosity, but so can anything that is as frightening or disgusting as a monster. A dictator's cruel regime is a monstrosity, and so is a three-headed fish. The word comes from the Latin word for monster, monstrum, with a root, monere, that means "warn," from the tradition of interpreting monstrous, deformed animals as omens — or warnings — of bad luck.
Vocabulary lists containing monstrosity
The Pigman
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I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
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Butterfly Yellow
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Petro earlier called the threat of a 100 percent tariff "a monstrosity" and threatened to withdraw Colombia from the Andean Community of Nations, a trade bloc which also includes Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru.
From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026
And so was the Kennedy Center in its monstrosity.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 3, 2026
Lieberman’s bill fused those two into a new agency, Customs and Border Protection—with Immigration and Customs Enforcement created as an initially small internal police force—then jammed them all into the hydra-headed monstrosity that is DHS.
From Slate • Jan. 15, 2026
“It’s right that when you see the scale, the monstrosity of these numbers, to have a healthy dose of skepticism,” said Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 5, 2025
“Well, if you two are going to walk around holding hands,” said Tootie, “I suppose I'll have to be the one who carries this monstrosity of a lamp.”
From "Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures" by Kate DiCamillo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
