Gorgon

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈɡɔːrɡən/

Definitions

1. A mythological female monster with serpentine hair whose deadly stare petrifies onlookers, or by extension any terrifying and repellent woman
2. A female monster from myth with snakes for hair whose gaze turns observers into stone ; a woman considered extremely frightening or ugly in appearance
3. A legendary being known for hair made of serpents that can petrify anyone who looks at it ; a term used to describe a woman who is shockingly ugly or frightening

Etymology: The Gorgons were not born as monsters in the Greek imagination so much as they were a word for terror. In ancient Greek, "gorgós" meant "terrible" or "fearsome," and the name "Gorgṓ" was a feminine form built on that adjective. The most famous bearer of the name was Medusa, one of three sisters whose gaze turned onlookers to stone, though the name itself described the dread they inspired rather than a particular face or body. The Greek word is thought by some scholars to share a root with a Sanskrit word for a growling, guttural sound, which would make the name possibly onomatopoeic, imitating the noise a beast makes. This connection is uncertain, and it remains a suggestion rather than an established fact. English took the word through Latin "Gorgō," arriving in Middle English as "gorgon" to name the snake-haired creatures of myth. Its use as a general term for any frightening or formidable woman came later.

Synonyms: monster, fury, serpent, witch, demon