lion
/ˈlaɪən/
lion noun: a big cat, Panthera leo, native to Africa, India and formerly much of Europe.
Noun (1)
lion (plural lions or (rare) lion)
- A big cat, Panthera leo, native to Africa, India and formerly much of Europe.
- Tigers and lions share a common ancestor from a few million years ago.
- For with ſuch puiſſance and impetuous maine / Thoſe Champions broke on them, that forſt the fly, / Like ſcattered Sheepe, whenas the Shepherds ſwaine / A Lyon and a Tigre doth eſpye, / With greedy pace forth ruſhing from the foreſt nye.1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 14, page 311
- 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.
- Any of various extant and extinct big cats, especially the mountain lion.
- A Chinese foo dog.
- A person who shows attributes associated with the lion, such as strength, courage, or ferocity.
- It was said of [Edward Plantaganet] that ‘he was a lion for pride and ferocity but a pard for inconstancy and changeableness, not keeping his word or promise but excusing himself with fair words’.2003, Peter Armstrong, Angus McBride, Stirling Bridge & Falkirk 1297–98: William Wallace's Rebellion
- A famous person regarded with interest and curiosity.
- During this period, we were the lions of the neighbourhood; and, no doubt, strangers from the distant villages were taken to see the "Karhowrees" (white men), in the same way that countrymen, in a city, are gallanted to the Zoological Gardens.1847 March 30, Herman Melville, Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas; […], London: John Murray, […], →OCLC
- Such society was far more enjoyable than that of Edinburgh, for here he was not a lion, but a man.1844, John Wilson, Essay on the Genius, and Character of Burns
- A light brown color that resembles the fur of a lion.
- An old Scottish coin, with a lion on the obverse, worth 74 shillings.
Adjective
lion (not comparable)
- Of the light brown color that resembles the fur of a lion.
Proper noun capitalized: Lion
the Lion
- The constellation and zodiacal sign Leo.
- The Lion reigneth in the Back, Sides, Bones, Sinews and Griſles.1668, ‘Godfridus’, The Knowledge of Things Unknown, London: G.P. for G. Sawbridge, page 19
- Those stars said to belong to the Ram might as well be supposed to belong to the Bull or the Lion.1862, [Frances Rolleston], Mazzaroth, or, The Constellations, London: Rivingtons, page 15
Noun (2) capitalized: Lion
Lion (plural Lions)
- A player for National Football League's Detroit Lions.
- A player for Canadian Football League's B.C. Lions.
- A player for the England football team.
- A player or supporter of the Brisbane Lions.
lion meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu
lion in Hindi
- big cat Panthera leo
- सिंह sĩh, शेर śer, सिंघ siṅgh, बबर babar, बबर-शेर babar-śer, केहर kehar
- person with strength and courage
- शेरदिल śerdil
lion in Tamil
- big cat Panthera leo
- சிங்கம் ciṅkam, அரிமா arimā
lion in Marathi
- big cat Panthera leo
- सिंह siuha
lion in Urdu
- big cat Panthera leo
- شیر śer, سِن٘گھ siṅgh, سِن٘ہ sĩh
More languagesFewer languages
- lion in Bengali
- সিংহ śiṅho, শের śer
- lion in Telugu
- సింహము siṁhamu, హరి hari
- lion in Malayalam
- സിംഹം siṁhaṁ
- lion in Kannada
- ಸಿಂಹ siṃha
- lion in Punjabi
- ਸ਼ੇਰ śer, ਸਿੰਘ siṅgh, سنگھ pnb
- lion in Gujarati
- સિંહ sĩh
- lion in Odia
- ସିଂହ siṁha
- lion in Sanskrit
- केसरी kesarī, सिंह siṃha, हरि hari
- lion in Sinhala
- සිංහයා siṁhayā
- lion in Assamese
- সিংহ xiṅho
- lion in Nepali
- सिंह siṅha
- lion in Pashto
- زمری zmaráy, مزری mazráy, غضنفر ǧazanfár
- lion in Tagalog
- leon, halimaw
- lion in Arabic
- أَسَد ʔasad, لَيْث layṯ, أسَد ʔásad, سبع sabʕ
- lion in Malay
- singa, asad
- lion in Indonesian
- singa
- lion in Persian
- شیر šēr, شیرْدِل širdel
- lion in Thai
- สิงโต sǐng-dtoo, ราชสีห์ râat-chá-sǐi, สีห์ sǐi
- lion in Vietnamese
- sư tử
- lion in Myanmar
- ခြင်္သေ့ hkrangse., သီဟ siha.
- Sindhi
- شِینھُن šī̃hun, شِینھِڻ šī̃hiṇ
- Kashmiri
- پادَر سٕہہ pādar sụh, شیرِ بَبَر śēri babar
- Dzongkha
- སེངགེ sengge
Examples of lion in a sentence
- Sinibaldus lists lion's fat as a popular medieval aphrodisiac treatment.1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page 138:
- The men were delighted to go, and became the lions of the following season in Adelaide.1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 84:
- She held their weakness for lions in good-humoured contempt, but played to them her part of the distinguished woman of letters with decorum.1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “ch. 4”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC:
- Heated comments were exchanged, and, before anyone could say, "festival," the two lions of the folk power structure were rolling in the dirt.1965 August, Mississippi Phil Ochs, “The Newport Fuzz Festival”, in The Realist, number 61, retrieved 13 Nov 2022, page 11:
Forms of lion
| plural | lions |
|---|---|
| plural | Lions |
| plural (rare) | lion |
| alternative form (obsolete) | lyon |
Origin of lion
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.
Words formed from lion
- 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
Phrases with lion
- fu lion
- red lion
- sea lion
- lion ants
- Lion City
- lion cubs
- lion cuts
- lion dogs
- lion mask
- Lion Rock
- lion skin
- snow lion
29 more phrasesFewer phrases
- lion diets
- lion masks
- lion tamer
- stone lion
- lion dances
- lion lizard
- lion tamers
- Nemean Lion
- Nubian lion
- steppe lion
- Gulf of Lion
- lion hunters
- lion lizards
- lion tamarin
- Lion of Judah
- lion tamarins
- mountain lion
- northern lion
- marsupial lion
- Lion of St. Mark
- Steller sea lion
- Steller's sea lion
- California sea lion
- golden lion tamarins
- South American sea lion
- beards the lion in his den
- bearded the lion in his den
- bearding the lion in his den
- March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb
Words that rhyme with lion
Questions about lion
- What does lion mean?
- Lion means a big cat, Panthera leo, native to Africa, India and formerly much of Europe.
- What is lion in Hindi?
- Lion in Hindi is सिंह (sĩh), शेर (śer), सिंघ (siṅgh). See Lion meaning in Hindi.
- How do you use lion in a sentence?
- Sinibaldus lists lion's fat as a popular medieval aphrodisiac treatment.
- What part of speech is lion?
- Lion can be a noun, an adjective or a proper noun.
- How do you pronounce lion?
- Lion is pronounced /ˈlaɪən/.
- What is the plural of lion?
- The plural of lion is lions.
Words near lion in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: lion (page history and authors); Lion (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-lion.ogg.
Cite this entry: “lion.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/lion. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.