mastodon

noun

mas·​to·​don ˈma-stə-ˌdän 

-dən

1

: any of various extinct mammals (genus Mammut synonym Mastodon) of the elephant family existing from the Miocene through the Pleistocene that are distinguished from the related mammoths chiefly by molar teeth with cone-shaped cusps

2

: one that is unusually large

mastodonic

ˌma-stə-ˈdä-nik 

adjective

mastodont

ˈma-stə-ˌdänt 

adjective or noun

Synonyms

• behemoth
• blockbuster
• colossus
• dinosaur
• dreadnought
• elephant
• giant
• Goliath
• jumbo
• leviathan
• mammoth
• monster
• titan
• whale
• whopper

Examples of mastodon in a Sentence

mom-and-pop stores just can't compete with these mastodons of retailing

Recent Examples on the Web

New York State Museum Remnants of mastodons have been discovered in New York before. —Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 18 Dec. 2024

The short-faced bear went extinct around 11,000 years, at the end of the Pleistocene, along with most of the large mammals that lived alongside it, including all the large carnivores listed above, as well as giant ground sloths, mammoths, mastodons, giant beavers, camels, and giant armadillos. —Sara Novak, Discover Magazine, 2 Dec. 2024

These are direct descendants of hunters who chased deer — and maybe mastodons and bison — across these hills. —Andrew Sharp, Outdoor Life, 27 Nov. 2024

Read More: Pre-Clovis Projectiles Hint At Multiple Migrations Hunting Massive and Small Mammals Ancient people who used Clovis technology typically hunted massive prey, like mammoths and mastodons. —Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 29 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin Mastodont-, Mastodon, genus name, Latinization of French mastodonte, vernacular name for the animal, from Greek mastós "breast, nipple" (probably from a pre-Greek substratal language) + French -odonte -odont; so named from the nipple-like cusps on the crowns of the molar teeth

First Known Use

1811, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

mastodon

noun

mast·​odon

ˈmas-tə-ˌdän,

-dən

: any of various huge extinct mammals related to the mammoths and existing elephants