Where does “monstrous” come from?
Monstrous comes from Middle English monstruous, from Latin monstrosus, formed with the Latin suffix -osus meaning "full of" or "characterized by," ultimately deriving from Proto-Italic -owonssos.
monstrous (English): Hideous or frightful; Enormously large; Freakish...
Definitions
- Hideous or frightful; Enormously large; Freakish...
Ancestry of “monstrous”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | monstrous | Alternative form of monstruous |
| 2 | Old French | monstrueuse | — |
| 3 | Latin | monstrosus | Alternative form of mōnstruōsus |