Frankenstein
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kənˌstaɪn noun
1.
a person who creates a monster or a destructive agency that cannot be controlled or that brings about the creator's ruin.
2.
Also called Frankenstein monster. the monster or destructive agency itself.
Origin:
1830–40; after a character in Mary Shelley's novel of the same name (1818)
1830–40; after a character in Mary Shelley's novel of the same name (1818)
Related forms
Frank·en·stein·i·an, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To frankenstein
Collins
World English Dictionary
Frankenstein (ˈfræŋkɪnˌstaɪn) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a person who creates something that brings about his ruin |
| 2. | Also called: Frankenstein's monster a thing that destroys its creator |
| [C19: after Baron Frankenstein, who created a destructive monster from parts of corpses in the novel by Mary Shelley (1818)] | |
| Franken'steinian | |
| —adj | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
00:10
Frankenstein
is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
Frankenstein
allusive use dates to 1838, from Baron Frankenstein, character in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel "Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus." Commonly used, mistakenly, to mean the monster he created, and thus franken- extended 1990s as a prefix to mean "non-natural."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
Frankenstein definition
(1818) A novel by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. The title character, Dr. Victor Frankenstein, makes a manlike monster from parts of cadavers and brings it to life by the power of an electrical charge. Frankenstein's monster is larger than most men and fantastically strong.
Note: Frequently the subject of horror films, the monster is usually pictured with an oversized square brow, metal bolts in his neck and forehead, and greenish skin. People often mistakenly refer to the monster, rather than to his creator, as “Frankenstein.”
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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