leviathan
noun · adjective
Simple meaning
A vast sea monster of tremendous strength, either imaginary or real, described as the most dangerous and powerful creature in the ocean.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
luhvyuhthuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ləˈvaɪəθən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
biblicalmythology
A vast sea monster of tremendous strength, either imaginary or real, described as the most dangerous and powerful creature in the ocean.
figurative
A thing which is monstrously great in size, strength, etc. (especially a ship); also, a person with great power or wealth.
figurativepolitical science
Sometimes in the form Leviathan: based on the writings of Thomas Hobbes, the political state, especially a domineering and totalitarian one.
Monstrous sea creature symbolizing evil in the Old Testament
Alternative letter-case form of leviathan.
adjective
Very large; enormous, gargantuan.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (biblical, mythology) A vast sea monster of tremendous strength, either imaginary or real, described as the most dangerous and powerful creature in the ocean.
Used this way, leviathan is a reasonably familiar word with a faintly unfavourable edge. It carries more force than its gentler alternatives. It sounds natural in ordinary conversation and in expressive writing alike.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Strong
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Everyday but emotionally strong
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use leviathan
- “It was a leviathan among redwoods.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.