Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An overwhelming or unstoppable force.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To crush as if by Juggernaut.
  • noun The popular form of Jagannatha, the name of the famous Hindu idol. See Jagannatha, 2.
  • noun Figuratively, something, as an idea, custom, fashion, requirement, etc., to which one either devotes himself or is blindly sacrificed.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun One of the names under which Vishnu, in his incarnation as Krishna, is worshiped by the Hindus. See also jagannath.
  • noun Any large, unstoppable force, power, or popular movement which defeats or destroys any person who gets in its way or attempts to stop it.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A literal or metaphorical force or object regarded as unstoppable, that will crush all in its path.
  • noun UK A large, cumbersome truck or lorry, especially an artic (typically used somewhat disparagingly).
  • noun An institution that incites destructive devotion or to which people are carelessly sacrificed.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a massive inexorable force that seems to crush everything in its way
  • noun a crude idol of Krishna
  • noun an avatar of Vishnu

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Hindi jagannāth, title of Krishna, from Sanskrit jagannāthaḥ, lord of the world : jagat, moving, the world (from earlier present participle of jigāti, he goes; see gwā- in Indo-European roots) + nāthaḥ, lord (from nāthate, he helps, protects).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Hindustani Hindi जगन्नाथ/Oriya ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ/ Urdu جگنّاتھ (jagannāth), from Sanskrit जगन्नाथ (jagannātha, "lord of the universe") (Jagannath), a title for the Hindu deity Vishnu's avatar Krishna. English form influenced by suffix -naut ("sailor").

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