English Explanatory Dictionary

lion

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A big cat, Panthera leo, native to Africa, India and formerly much of Europe.
  2. A male lion, as opposed to a lioness, which is characterized by having a flowing shaggy mane and taking little part in hunting, which can be done cooperatively.
  3. Any of various extant and extinct big cats, especially the mountain lion.
  4. A Chinese foo dog.
  5. A person who shows attributes associated with the lion, such as strength, courage, or ferocity.
  6. A famous person regarded with interest and curiosity.
  7. A light brown color that resembles the fur of a lion.
  8. An old Scottish coin, with a lion on the obverse, worth 74 shillings.
adj
  1. Of the light brown color that resembles the fur of a lion.
name
  1. The constellation and zodiacal sign Leo.
noun
  1. A player for National Football League's Detroit Lions.
  2. A player for Canadian Football League's B.C. Lions.
  3. A player for the England football team.
  4. A player or supporter of the Brisbane Lions.

Pronunciation

lī'ən /ˈlaɪən/ en-us-lion.ogg

Word forms

lion lions lyon the Lion

Etymology

From Middle English lyoun, lion, leon, borrowed from Old French lion, from Latin leō, (accusative: leōnem), from Ancient Greek λέων (léōn), of unclear origin. Doublet of Leo, leu, lev, and Lyon. Displaced Old English lēo, from the same Latin source.

Related words

Chameleon leo Leon Leonids leonine Lion's club Lion's sermon Panthera leo

Derived words

African lion African Lion Dog African Lion Hound American lion antlion ant lion aphid lion aphis lion Asian lion Asiatic lion Atlas lion Barbary lion beard the lion beard the lion in his den brave as a lion Cape lion cave lion Cotswold lion cowardly lion dandelion demilion Essex lion foo lion Galapagos sea lion Galápagos sea lion golden lion tamarin guardian lion jaglion Japanese sea lion leopon liger liliger lion ant lionburger lion cub lion cut lion dance lion diet lion dog lionesque lioness lionet lionfish lion fish lionhead lionhead cichlid lionhead rabbit lionheart lionhearted lion-hearted lion-heartedly lionhood lion hunter lion in the way lionise lionize lionish lionism lionitis lionkeeper

Translations

Abenaki: pitôlo Abkhaz: алым Afar: lubaka Afar: lubak Afrikaans: leeu Akan: gyata Akkadian: 𒆷𒁍𒌝 Akkadian: 𒌨𒈤 Albanian: luan Amharic: አንበሳ Arabic: أَسَد Arabic: لَيْث Arabic: أسَد Arabic: سبع Arabic: أسد Chadian Arabic: دود Aragonese: lión Aramaic: ܐܪܝܐ Aramaic: אַרְיָא Armenian: առյուծ Old Armenian: առիւծ Aromanian: ljundar Aromanian: aslan Assamese: সিংহ Asturian: lleón Asturian: llión Avar: гъалбацӏ Azerbaijani: aslan Azerbaijani: şir Baiso: luban Balinese: singa Bangi: nkosi Bashkir: арыҫлан Basque: lehoi Belanda Bor: ꞌdübor Belarusian: леў Bemba: inkalamo class 9 Bengali: সিংহ Bengali: শের Bau Bidayuh: singa Bongo: kpülï Bouyei: jizlanz Bouyei: siyzij Bulgarian: лъв Burmese: ခြင်္သေ့ Burmese: သီဟ Buryat: арсалан Carpathian Rusyn: лев Catalan: lleó Cebuano: leon Central Atlas Tamazight: ⵉⵣⵎ Central Atlas Tamazight: ⴰⵢⵔⴰⴷ Chagatai: ارسلان Chechen: лом
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