juggernaut
noun
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The History of Juggernaut
In the early 14th century, Franciscan missionary Friar Odoric brought to Europe the story of an enormous carriage that carried an image of the Hindu god Vishnu (whose title was Jagannāth, literally, "lord of the world") through the streets of India in religious processions. Odoric reported that some worshippers deliberately allowed themselves to be crushed beneath the vehicle's wheels as a sacrifice to Vishnu. That story was likely an exaggeration or misinterpretation of actual events, but it spread throughout Europe. The tale caught the imagination of English listeners, and they began using juggernaut to refer to any massive vehicle (such as a steam locomotive) and to any other enormous entity with powerful crushing capabilities. While the word is still used sometimes in British English to refer to a very large, heavy truck (also called a "juggernaut lorry"), juggernaut is more commonly used figuratively for a relentless force, entity, campaign, or movement, as in "a political/economic/cultural juggernaut."
Examples of juggernaut in a Sentence
Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 22 Mar. 2025
As rap grew into a commercial juggernaut, the rapper’s standing rose as the beat-maker’s declined.
—Sheldon Pearce, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2025
Episodes paramount+ Everybody Loves Raymond Years: 1996-2005 Length: 9 seasons, 210 episodes
Creator: Philip Rosenthal
One of the best sitcoms of all time, this CBS juggernaut remains hysterical, and Peacock is now the exclusive streaming home of the Barone family.
—Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025
This jukebox musical about the King of Pop won four Tony Awards after Broadway previews in December 2021 and a grand opening in February 2022, going on to become a box-office juggernaut.
—Rod Stafford Hagwood, Sun Sentinel, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for juggernaut
Cite this Entry
“Juggernaut.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/juggernaut. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
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