I. Orig. belonging to relig. lang., a divine omen indicating misfortune, an evil omen, portent (syn.: “ostentum, prodigium, portentum): quia ostendunt, portendunt, monstrant, praedicunt, ostenta, portenta, monstra, prodigia dicuntur,” Cic. Div. 1, 42, 93; cf.: monstrum dictum velut monestrum, quod moneat aliquid futurum; prodigium velut praedicium, quod praedicat; portentum quod portendat; ostentum, quod ostendat, Paul. ex Fest. p. 140 and 138 Müll.; cf. id. ib. p. 157: hic est nullum (dubium) quin monstrum siet, Enn. ap. Non. 469, 6 (Trag. v. 326 Vahl.): “monstra deūm,” Verg. A. 3, 59; cf. Ov. M. 15, 571.—
II. Transf., a monster, monstrosity (whether a living being or an inanimate thing).
A. Ofliving beings: “monstrum hominis,” you monster of a man, Ter. Eun. 4, 4, 29: “monstrum advenit,” id. ib. 5, 2, 21: “horrendum, of Polyphemus,” Verg. A. 3, 658.—Also with respect to character: “en monstrum mulieris,” that monster of a woman, Plaut. Poen. 1, 2, 64: “nulla jam pernicies a monstro illo atque prodigio comparabitur,” Cic. Cat. 2, 1, 1: “fatale, of Cleopatra,” Hor. C. 1, 37, 21: “tune etiam, immanissimum ac foedissimum monstrum ausus es?” Cic. Pis. 14, 31: “hominum,” monsters of men, Gell. 17, 1, 1.—Of beasts: “succinctam latrantibus inguina monstris, i. e. canibus,” Verg. E. 6, 75: “quae plurima terrae monstra ferunt,” id. G. 1, 185.—
B. Of inanim. things, of the sea, Verg. A. 5, 849: “infelix, of the Trojan horse,” id. ib. 2, 245.—Of the ship Argo, Cat. 64, 15: “non mihi jam furtum, sed monstrum ac prodigium videbatur,” Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 73, § 171: monstra narrare, dicere, to relate wonders, prodigies, marvels: “mera monstra narrabat,” Cic. Att. 4, 7, 1: “dicere,” id. Tusc. 4, 24, 54: “ac portenta loqui,” Lucr. 590: “totaque jam sparsis exarserat insula monstris,” Val. Fl. 2, 248: “in vitā suā fecit monstra,” he did wonderful things, Vulg. Eccl. 48, 15; Sap. 19, 8.
