[moh-lok, mol-uh
k] 
| 1. | a deity whose worship was marked by the propitiatory sacrifice of children by their own parents. II Kings 23:10; Jer. 32:35. |
| 2. | anything conceived of as requiring appalling sacrifice: the Moloch of war. |
| 3. | (lowercase) a spiny agamid lizard, Moloch horridus, of Australian deserts, that resembles the horned lizard. |
| Mo·lech (mō'lěk', mŏl'ək) n. Variant of Moloch. |
| Mo·loch (mō'lŏk', mŏl'ək) n.
[Late Latin Moloch, from Greek Molokh, from Hebrew Mōlek, of Canaanite origin; see mlk in Semitic roots.] |
A Canaanite idol who demanded the sacrifice of first-born children. The Old Testament prophets railed against the worship of Moloch by the Israelites.
Note: Moloch also appears as one of the fallen angels in Milton's Paradise Lost and as a malevolent figure in other allegorical works of literature.
Note: By extension, a “Moloch” is something that has the power to exact extreme sacrifice.