mostro

Forms

mostro m (plural mostri)^[1] Old Italian also wrote monstro and monstru.^[2][1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin mōnstrum (“portent, prodigy”), a learned word, through the older form “monstro”.^{[3][4][5][6][1]} The Latin noun first named a prodigy revealing the will of the gods, and so “a thing against nature”.^[4][7][5] It is probably an instrument noun from moneō (“to warn”), from Proto-Italic *monestrom, though DELI notes that the formation, seen also in lūstrum, is exceptional.^[3][4][1] Devoto derives it from the root “*mon-”, the strong grade of “*men-” “think”.^[8] From the idea of a thing to be pointed out comes the Latin verb mōnstrō, the source of mostrare.^[4]

The word is pan-Romance: French monstre, Spanish monstruo and Portuguese monstro.^[5][4][9][1] The adjective mostruoso continues Latin mōnstruōsus, while mostruosità was formed in Italian.^[3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The first record is in Restoro d'Arezzo, 1282, for a mythological or legendary creature, one whose body is abnormal or joins parts of different beings.^[3][2][6]

Semantic evolution

Already in the 13th century the word could be used in praise, for a prodigy or marvel (Ciampolo Ugurgieri), as in Petrarch's “o de le donne altero e raro mostro”, O proud and rare wonder among women.^[3][6] A creature born malformed is a mostro in the 14th century (the vernacular Saint Augustine, Dante); Benedetto Varchi defined such monsters, before 1565, as beings with too many, too few or ill-proportioned limbs.^[3] The sense “very ugly or very cruel person” is recorded about 1446 in Giovanni Gherardi.^[3]

In modern use the word also names the perpetrator of atrocious crimes, especially sexual ones, as in il mostro di Firenze, and, positively, a person of extraordinary talent: un mostro sacro is a figure of unquestioned standing in a field.^[6][10][11]

Timeline

• 1282 – Restoro d'Arezzo uses mostro and mostruoso.^[3][2]
• 13th century – Ciampolo Ugurgieri uses it for a prodigy.^[3]
• 14th century – It names a malformed creature, in the vernacular Saint Augustine and in Dante.^[3]
• About 1446 – Giovanni Gherardi uses it for a very ugly or cruel person.^[3]
• Before 1565 – Benedetto Varchi defines monsters, mostruosità is first recorded.^[3]
• 1890 – Mostriciattolo “little monster” is recorded.^[4]

Meanings

Noun

1. A legendary or mythological creature combining different natures, human or animal: Il Minotauro era un mostro metà uomo e metà toro.^{[6][10][11][1]}
2. (figurative) A person of repulsive appearance, (jocular) someone who looks a fright: Con quei capelli sembri un mostro!^[6][10]
3. (biology, medicine) A fetus, animal or plant with severe congenital malformations.^[6][10]
4. (figurative) A cruel, wicked person; the perpetrator of atrocious crimes, especially sexual ones.^[6][10][11]
5. (figurative) A person of extraordinary ability in some field; a prodigy: Negli scacchi è un vero mostro.^[6][10][11]

Word family

• mostruoso
• mostruosità
• mostriciattolo

Related words

• mostrare
• monito
• Latin mōnstrum

Usage notes

Mostro sacro is a person whose standing in their field is undisputed.^[10][6] GRADIT also lists a literary mostro, the shortened past participle of mostrare “shown”.^[6]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Tesoro della Lingua Italiana delle Origini (1997–), Opera del Vocabolario Italiano, CNR, Firenze; tlio.ovi.cnr.it
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Cortelazzo, Manlio; Zolli, Paolo (1999), Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, 2nd ed. by Manlio Cortelazzo and Michele A. Cortelazzo, Bologna: Zanichelli
4. ^ a b c d e f g Nocentini, Alberto; Parenti, Alessandro (2010), l'Etimologico: vocabolario della lingua italiana, Firenze: Le Monnier
5. ^ a b c Battisti, Carlo; Alessio, Giovanni (1950–1957), Dizionario etimologico italiano, 5 vols., Firenze: Barbèra (reprint 1975), p. 2519
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k De Mauro, Tullio (ed.) (2003), Grande dizionario italiano dell'uso, CD-ROM version 2.0, Torino: UTET
7. ^ Prati, Angelico (1951), Vocabolario etimologico italiano, Milano: Garzanti
8. ^ Devoto, Giacomo (1968), Avviamento alla etimologia italiana: dizionario etimologico, 2nd ed., Firenze: Le Monnier
9. ^ Meyer-Lübke, Wilhelm (1935), Romanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, 3rd ed., Heidelberg: Winter
10. ^ a b c d e f g Devoto, Giacomo; Oli, Gian Carlo; Serianni, Luca; Trifone, Maurizio (2026), Nuovo Devoto–Oli: il vocabolario dell'italiano contemporaneo, digital ed., Milano: Le Monnier
11. ^ a b c d Sabatini, Francesco; Coletti, Vittorio; Manfredini, Manuela (2026), Dizionario italiano Sabatini Coletti, digital ed., Milano: Sansoni / Rizzoli Larousse