minotaur

IPA/ˈmaɪ.nə.tɔːr/
IPA/ˈmɪn.ə.tɔːr/

minotaur — 名詞

  • minotaursingular
  • minotaursplural

1. a monster from Greek myth with a man's body and a bull's head, famous for living

1.名詞B2
釋義

彌諾陶洛斯

希臘神話中的人身牛首怪物

a monster from Greek myth with a man's body and a bull's head, famous for living inside a huge maze on Crete

例句

The museum guide pointed to the Minotaur at the centre of the maze.

博物館導覽員指著迷宮中央的彌諾陶洛斯。

typical setting: the Minotaur in the maze

Asher played Theseus in the school play and fought the Minotaur with a wooden sword.

Asher 在學校的戲劇表演裡飾演 Theseus，拿著木劍和彌諾陶洛斯對戰。

story role: fight the Minotaur

同義詞
  • 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

❌The Minotaur was a real animal in ancient Greece.
✅The Minotaur is a monster from Greek myth.
💡this word names a legendary creature, not a historical animal.

2. a bull-headed monster based on the Greek Minotaur, used in modern fantasy books,

2.名詞C1
釋義

牛頭怪

現代奇幻作品中的牛頭怪角色

a bull-headed monster based on the Greek Minotaur, used in modern fantasy books, films, or video games

例句

The final game level sends players into a cave guarded by a minotaur.

遊戲最後一關把玩家送進一個由牛頭怪守著的洞穴。

common gaming frame: guarded by a minotaur

Sirin bought a poster of a red-eyed minotaur from the fantasy film.

Sirin 買了一張奇幻電影海報，上面有一隻紅眼牛頭怪。

同義詞
  • monster

    much broader; it can refer to any frightening invented being

  • beast

    emphasizes brute force or animal qualities more than the myth-based design

  • creature

    neutral and broad; it does not suggest the bull-headed shape

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.

常見錯誤

❌The hero fights the Minotaur in level six.
✅The hero fights a minotaur in level six.
💡use lower case and an article for a generic game creature, not the one creature from Greek myth.