ogre
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
a large, ugly, and scary monster in fairy tales that is very strong and often eats people.
a large, grotesque, and brutish humanoid monster in folklore, typically characterised by immense strength and a predatory nature.
Simple“In the story, the brave knight had to defeat a giant ogre to save the village.”
In context“The folklore of the region is populated by ogres that dwell in deep caverns, emerging only to terrorise local settlements.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
a person who is very mean, cruel, or frightening to others.
a person who is perceived as exceptionally cruel, brutish, or intimidating in their behaviour.
Simple“The children thought their new headmaster was a total ogre because he never smiled.”
In context“Despite his reputation as a corporate ogre, the CEO was known to be quite generous in his private philanthropic efforts.”
First attested in the 18th century, borrowed from French ogre, from Latin Orcus (“god of the underworld”), from Ancient Greek Ὅρκος (Hórkos), the personified demon of oaths (ὅρκος (hórkos, “oath”)) who inflicts punishment upon oath-breakers. Doublet of orc and Orcus.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.