ogre

American  

[oh-ger] / ˈoʊ gər /

noun

• ogres
  plural

1. a monster in fairy tales and popular legend, usually represented as a hideous giant who feeds on human flesh.

2. a monstrously ugly, cruel, or barbarous person.

   Synonyms:

   despot, tyrant, fiend

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ogre British  

/ ˈəʊɡə /

noun

1. (in folklore) a giant, usually given to eating human flesh

2. any monstrous or cruel person

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Usage

What does ogre mean? An ogre is a fictional creature usually represented as a mean, ugly humanlike monster or giant who eats people. Ogres have traditionally appeared in fairy tales and legends, but they’re also depicted in modern media, such as fantasy video games and the series of movies starring the character Shrek, who happens to be a friendly ogre. The word ogre is sometimes used in a figurative way as an insult referring to a person who’s cruel, monstrous, ugly, or brutish—or (especially) a combination of these characteristics, as in The boss at my last job was a complete ogre—he had a terrible temper and delighted in harassing and firing people. Such a person can be described with the adjective ogreish (or ogrish). A female ogre can be called an ogress, but this is not commonly used, especially since the word ogre can be used regardless of gender. Example: At the end of this level, you have to battle a huge ogre who’s trying to eat you alive.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• ogreism
  noun
• ogress
  noun
• ogrism
  noun
• ogreish
  adjective
• ogrish
  adjective
• ogreishly
  adverb
• ogrishly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• ogres
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ogre

1705–15; < French; perhaps ≪ Latin Orcus Orcus

Compare meaning

How does ogre compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• ogre vs. orc

Explanation

An ogre is a big, ugly monster. In many myths and fairytales, ogres are giant, unintelligent, human-like creatures that eat people. However, the ogre Shrek comes off as a right jolly fellow. The grotesque, awkwardly large ogre has been a figure in mythology for many years, a close relation to evil giants and other frightening creatures. In many stories, ogres eat babies, and they're usually quite ugly, with strangely colored skin, large heads, and strong bodies. The word ogre is also sometimes used to describe despicable, evil people. Ogre comes from the French, coined by the French fairy tale writer, Charles Perrault.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ogre ogres

After World War II, Franco was regarded as the “primary resident ogre of Western Europe.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 19, 2025

You’ll get “Shrek 5” where Shrek’s ogre offspring use TikTok, and you’ll like it.

From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2025

Eventually – as viewers of the Disney film will know - Belle falls in love with the ogre and discovers he is in fact a prince.

From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2025

Who knew watching a fairy tale based on an ogre living in a dark swamp could be so thrilling?

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 16, 2024

I quickly changed my prayer that the ogre wouldn’t remove and eat my master’s eye.

From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri

The latest model had a tendency to mention other creatures as well: raccoons, trolls, ogres and pigeons, to be specific.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

Alongside telling it to avoid platitudes, it said Codex should "never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures unless it is absolutely and unambiguously relevant to the user's query".

From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026

He loves all disfigured nasties, be they swamp creatures, eyeball-less ogres or bolt-headed Hellboys.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2025

These networks -- just like humans, onions, and ogres -- have layers, which makes them tricky to navigate.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 4, 2024

Reyna yelled, ‘Eiaculare flammas/’ and a wave of flaming arrows arced over the legion’s shield wall, destroying a platoon of ogres.

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan