minotaur
minotaur — noun
- minotaursingular
- minotaursplural
1. a monster from Greek myth with a man's body and a bull's head, famous for living
a monster from Greek myth with a man's body and a bull's head, famous for living inside a huge maze on Crete
The museum guide pointed to the Minotaur at the centre of the maze.
typical setting: the Minotaur in the maze
Asher played Theseus in the school play and fought the Minotaur with a wooden sword.
story role: fight the Minotaur
The wall painting showed the Minotaur with dark horns, broad shoulders, and angry eyes.
Our history teacher explained why King Minos sent young people to the Minotaur.
- monster
broader term for any frightening creature; it does not suggest the bull-headed shape or Greek story
- mythical creature
broader and more neutral; it does not name this exact figure from the Theseus story
- beast
emphasizes wild strength or violence, not the specific human-and-bull form
文法句型
the Minotaur
用法筆記
This sense usually refers to the single monster from the Greek myth, and writers often capitalize it when treating it as a name. Distinguish it from sense 2, which means a similar invented creature in modern fantasy.
常見錯誤
2. a bull-headed monster based on the Greek Minotaur, used in modern fantasy books,
a bull-headed monster based on the Greek Minotaur, used in modern fantasy books, films, or video games
The final game level sends players into a cave guarded by a minotaur.
common gaming frame: guarded by a minotaur
Sirin bought a poster of a red-eyed minotaur from the fantasy film.
In the comic, a minotaur in metal armour smashes the gate with its horns.
The novelist turned the minotaur into a lonely guard of the underground city.
文法句型
a minotaur
用法筆記
This sense is for a generic creature that appears in modern fantasy worlds, so it normally takes an article and stays in lower case. Distinguish it from sense 1, the original monster from Greek myth.