Word.ws English Dictionary

merlions

merlions is the plural of merlion.

Meaning of merlion

Noun (1)

merlion (plural merlions)

  1. (Singapore) Often Merlion: a symbolic creature having the head of a lion and the body of a fish, which is a national symbol of Singapore; an image, statue, or other depiction of this creature.
    • In 1995, a second Merlion was built on the island of Sentosa. This new Merlion is actually a 37-metre high panoramic tower, from which it is possible to view mainland Singapore and the Straits of Singapore[…]. A new "ancient legend" was created for this creature with this tower. The legend alleged...2002, Can-Seng Ooi, Cultural Tourism and Tourism Cultures: The Business of Mediating Experiences in Copenhagen and Singapore, Copenhagen: Copenhagen Business School Press, →ISBN, pages 109–110
  2. A fictional creature of similar make-up.
    • There were night penguins that emitted green light only when hunting in dark seas, and merlions whose manes were fringed with pallid lavender.2000, Alan Dean Foster, A Triumph of Souls, New York, N.Y.: Aspect/Warner Books, →ISBN

Noun (2)

merlion (plural merlions)

  1. A depiction of a bird similar to a house martin or swallow with stylized feet; a martlet.
    • He beareth two coats quarterly, with an Inſcocheon of pretence, viz. The firſt, per bend nebulee, Or and Sable, a Lion Rampant counterchained, by the name of Sympſon; The ſecond, Argent, a Feſſe, Gules, between three Merlions, or Sparhawks, Sable, beaks and legs, Or, by the name of Oneſlow; […]1666, John Guillim, “Section VI, Chapter I”, in A Display of Herauldry: […], 6th edition, London: […] John Williams […], and Joshua Kirton […]; Humphrey Tuckey […], and Francis Tyton […], →OCLC, page...

Questions about merlions

What is merlions the plural of?
Merlions is the plural of merlion.

Words near merlions in the dictionary

  1. Merlino
  2. merlinoite
  3. Merlinos
  4. merlins
  5. merlion
  6. merlions
  7. Merlo
  8. merlon
  9. merlons
  10. Merlos
  11. merlot

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: merlions (page history and authors); merlion (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.

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Cite this entry: “merlions.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/merlions. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.