monstrous
/ˈmɒnstrəs/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈmɑːnstrəs/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈmän(t)-strəs/ (ame, mw)
monstrous — adjective
- monstrouspositive
- more monstrouscomparative
- most monstroussuperlative
1. so cruel, unfair, or evil that it shocks people and feels far beyond what any de
so cruel, unfair, or evil that it shocks people and feels far beyond what any decent person should do.
The soldiers carried out a monstrous attack on the village before dawn.
monstrous + noun for shocking violence
Roya called the scam a monstrous crime against elderly people living alone.
monstrous + crime for moral condemnation
The judge said the company had shown monstrous cruelty toward injured workers.
Tanvi could not forgive the monstrous lie that destroyed her brother's marriage.
文法句型
monstrous + noun (crime/act/injustice/cruelty)
be + monstrous + to-infinitive
用法筆記
Usually describes actions, treatment, or systems that deserve strong moral condemnation, not ordinary mistakes or simple unpleasantness. It often appears with nouns like 'crime,' 'injustice,' 'cruelty,' and 'lie.'
常見錯誤
2. having a frightening, ugly, or abnormal look that makes it seem more like a nigh
having a frightening, ugly, or abnormal look that makes it seem more like a nightmare creature than an ordinary living thing.
The illustrator drew a monstrous bird with six wings and a child's face.
monstrous + creature with abnormal features
Kemi woke from a dream about a monstrous dog scratching at the window.
The old tree had a monstrous shape, with roots twisting above the ground.
Christopher wore a monstrous mask covered in green scales and broken teeth.
- normal
having an ordinary shape or appearance.
- natural-looking
appearing ordinary rather than strange or deformed.
文法句型
monstrous + noun (face/shape/creature/statue)
look/seem + monstrous
用法筆記
This sense focuses on appearance or form. It is common in fantasy, horror, and vivid description, where something looks unnaturally ugly, frightening, or deformed. If you only mean 'very large,' use sense 3 instead.
常見錯誤
3. so big in scale, quantity, or force that it feels excessive and hard to ignore.
so big in scale, quantity, or force that it feels excessive and hard to ignore.
Liang paid a monstrous bill after inviting thirty cousins to dinner.
monstrous + bill for excessive amount
The storm sent a monstrous wave crashing over the harbour wall.
Eve showed me a monstrous pile of forms waiting on her desk.
The startup made a monstrous profit during the first month of the game.
文法句型
monstrous + noun (bill/wave/profit/pile/amount)
a monstrous amount of + noun
用法筆記
Often used for size, cost, amount, or strength in a dramatic way. It can describe both physical things and abstract quantities such as profits, bills, or appetites. Distinguish it from sense 2: here the focus is excess size or scale, not a frightening appearance.
常見錯誤
monstrous — adverb
1. to an extreme, often shocking degree; much more than is normal, fair, or reasona
to an extreme, often shocking degree; much more than is normal, fair, or reasonable.
Parents said the tickets were monstrously expensive for a short school concert.
monstrously + adjective for shocked emphasis
The law treated widows monstrously unfairly after their husbands died abroad.
monstrously + adverb in moral criticism
After the flood, food prices rose monstrously high in the mountain villages.
The company responded monstrously slowly while customers waited for safety warnings.
- extremely
the neutral everyday intensifier, without the same dramatic tone.
- outrageously
similarly adds a sense of excess, especially when something feels unfair.
- absurdly
emphasizes that the degree seems unreasonable or ridiculous.
文法句型
monstrously + adjective
monstrously + adverb
用法筆記
This adverb is rare and literary compared with everyday intensifiers such as 'very' or 'extremely.' It often appears before negative adjectives or adverbs when the speaker wants to stress excess, outrage, or moral shock.