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Minotaur
noun
Mi·no·taur
?mi-nə-ˌtȯr
?mī-
also -ˌtär
: a monster shaped half like a man and half like a bull, confined in the labyrinth built by Daedalus for Minos, and given a periodic tribute of youths and maidens as food until slain by Theseus
Examples of Minotaur in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Tiny Minotaur also offers day-passes for the orc-curious.
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Eric Webb, Austin American-Statesman, 12 June 2024
Readers are shown the likely son of a gardener planting the seeds of literature in Mesopotamia, the jungle shaman carefully hovering over the bones of the dead in the Amazon and the first rumbles of the Minotaur in the Mediterranean.
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Joe Sills, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur — with the head of a bull and body of a man — was imprisoned at the center of a labyrinth in Crete and ate anyone who couldn’t find their way out.
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Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 19 Oct. 2024
Ariadne is the sister of the Minotaur, a half-human, half-bull creature that Theseus is ordered to slay.
—
Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 5 Sep. 2024
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Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Latin Minotaurus, from Greek Minōtauros, from Minōs + tauros bull
First Known Use
14th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of Minotaur was
in the 14th century
Articles Related to Minotaur
Dictionary Entries Near Minotaur
Cite this Entry
“Minotaur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Minotaur. Accessed 17 Dec. 2024.
More from Merriam-Webster on Minotaur
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about Minotaur
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