A monster who was half man and half bull, to whom young Athenian men and women were sacrificed in the Cretan labyrinth until Theseus killed him.
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(gr. myth., person, proper) A monster with the body of a man and the head of a bull (in some versions, with the body of a bull and the head of a man), confined by Minos in a labyrinth built by Daedalus, and annually fed seven youths and seven maidens from Athens, until killed by Theseus.
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(Greek mythology) A monster with the head of a bull and the body of a man.
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Anything resembling the Greek monster, whether by appearance or by strength.
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(Greek mythology, with "the") A monster, half man and half bull, who dwelled in the labyrinth in Crete and who was killed by Theseus.
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Other Word Forms
Noun
Singular:
minotaur
Plural:
minotaurs
Origin of minotaur
From Ancient Greek Μινώταυρος (minōtauros), from Μίνως (Minōs, “king of Crete") + ταῦρος (taûros, “bull").
From
Wiktionary
See minotaur
From
Wiktionary
Minotaur Sentence Examples
The contest between Theseus and the Minotaur was frequently represented in Greek art.
In Attic tradition and on the Athenian stage Minos is a cruel tyrant, the heartless exactor of the tribute of Athenian youths to feed the Minotaur.
Some modern mythologists regard the Minotaur as a solar personification and a Greek adaptation of the Baal-Moloch of the Phoenicians.
To avenge the death of his son, Minos demanded that seven Athenian youths and seven maidens should be sent every ninth year to be devoured by the Minotaur.
The slaying of the Minotaur by Theseus in that case indicates the abolition of such sacrifice by the advance of Greek civilization.