monster-in-law

8.4

A mother-in-law who is very hard to get along with

noun
/ˈmɒnstər ɪn lɔː/

Offensive

: suegra insoportable

My monster-in-law insists on criticizing everything I do in the kitchen.

Examples

Don't let your monster-in-law ruin your wedding day!
Whenever her monster-in-law visits, she finds herself stressed and exhausted.
He survived the holidays with his monster-in-law by keeping a good sense of humor.
My monster-in-law always criticizes my cooking.
He managed to smile through the tension created by his monster-in-law during family dinners.
When she had to host her monster-in-law, it felt like preparing for a battle every time.
His stories about dealing with a monster-in-law often made everyone laugh at family gatherings.

Surface Forms

monster-in-law singular

monsters-in-law plural

Morphology

monster-in-law = monster + in-law (transparent) = monster + in-law

Meaning is readily derived by compounding 'monster' (an unpleasant person) with 'in-law' (a relative by marriage), modelled on the familiar 'mother-in-law' pattern.

Etymology

Monster-in-law mixes monster 'a frightening creature' and in-law 'family by marriage'. It is a joking way to call a difficult mother-in-law, often said as a joke or a little exaggeration to show she is hard to deal with.