Etymologically
Log in

lion

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 12:05. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈlaɪən/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English leon, lyon, borrowed from Old French lion, also directly leo (“lion”) (accusative leōnem),[2][3][4] from Ancient Greek λέων (léōn) (genitive léontos),[2][3][5] a word of unknown, perhaps non-Indo-European origin;[2][5][3] Etymonline compares Hebrew lābī' and Egyptian forms, which Barnhart thinks unlikely sources.[3][2] Old English had the word directly from Latin, as lēo, Anglian lēa.[2][3][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

About 1175 in Barnhart, the late 12th century in Etymonline;[2][3] the OED counts Old English leo from about 825.[7]

Semantic evolution

The Latin word spread through the Germanic languages, as Dutch leeuw and German Löwe, and into Slavic and Celtic.[2][3] Figurative use for a brave or a tyrannical person is from about 1200,[3] and a celebrity much sought after is a lion from the 18th century.[8][9] The name was extended to other big cats, such as the mountain lion, from 1630,[7][3] and ironically to timid animals, as Cotswold lion for a sheep (16th century).[3][7] The lion's share is from 1701, and lion-hearted from 1708.[3] Word Origins notes that the lions known in early Europe were Asiatic, not African, and that lions led by donkeys became a description of British soldiers in the First World War.[6]

Timeline

  • c. 825 – Old English lēo.[7]
  • c. 1175 – leon, from French.[2]
  • c. 1200 – figuratively, a fierce person.[3]
  • 1630 – other big cats.[7]
  • 1701 – the lion's share.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A large predatory cat of Africa and India, with a tawny coat and, in the male, a shaggy mane.
  2. A brave or strong person.
  3. A famous or important person: a literary lion.
  4. the Lion: the constellation and zodiac sign Leo.

Word family

  • lionlike
  • lionesque
  • lionet
  • lionheart
  • dandelion
  • liger
  • lioness
  • lionfish

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  7. ^ a b c d e Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  9. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin