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• griffin
  griffin

  noun

  a fabled monster, usually having the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.
• Griffin
  Griffin

  noun

  a city in W Georgia.

griffin

¹ American  

[grif-in] / ˈgrɪf ɪn /

Also griffon,

noun

Classical Mythology.

1. a fabled monster, usually having the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.

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griffin ² American  

[grif-in] / ˈgrɪf ɪn /

noun

1. (in India and the East) a newcomer, especially a white person from a Western country.

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Griffin ³ American  

[grif-in] / ˈgrɪf ɪn /

noun

1. a city in W Georgia.

2. a male given name.

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griffin ¹ British  

/ ˈɡrɪfɪn /

noun

1. a winged monster with an eagle-like head and the body of a lion

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griffin ² British  

/ ˈɡrɪfɪn /

noun

1. a newcomer to the Orient, esp one from W Europe

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Other Word Forms

• griffinage
  noun
• griffinhood
  noun
• griffinism
  noun
• griffinesque
  adjective
• griffinish
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of griffin¹

1300–50; Middle English griffoun < Middle French grifon < Latin grȳphus < Greek grȳp- (stem of grȳ́ps ) “curled, curved, having a hooked nose”

Origin of griffin²

First recorded in 1785–95; origin uncertain

Explanation

If your little brother wants a pet griffin, you should probably try to talk him out of it. A griffin is a flying, eagle-headed lion with sharp talons. (Luckily for you, griffins aren't real.) The mythical griffin — also spelled gryphon or griffon — dates as far back as 3000 BCE. Some griffins have the front talons of an eagle, like the griffins that appear on shields or coats-of-arms — they were often used this way, since the combination of lion and eagle was seen as being especially brave and strong. Griffins appear in literature ranging from Rumi's ancient Persian poetry to the Harry Potter books. The word's Greek root is gryps, "curved."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

griffin Griffin

On the left arm, the mythical griffin creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle appears to be fighting with a stag.

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2025

You can’t have a lot of body horror in a kid’s movie, but you can have a topiary griffin who torrentially evacuates dead leaves across the backyard in a beautiful, disgusting arc.

From Slate ● Sep. 20, 2018

At first she believed it to be some kind of mythical creature, a California version of a minotaur or a griffin.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2018

History will show whether they got what they needed waiting as long as they did — 13 other cornerbacks were selected before the Seahawks took griffin.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2017

He was walking up the hill, as fast as the griffin would allow him to go, which was not fast.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

“As Ms. Griffin herself concedes, she has no proof of the sexual abuse she recalled for the first time decades later while using psychedelics,” New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha said in a statement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Months later, a woman filed suit against Griffin, Lansky, Dial and Penguin Random House under the name Jane Doe.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Among those temporarily stuck is Nici Griffin, a continuous cruiser who runs the Three Sheep Cheese Boat with her partner and describes herself as a floating cheesemonger.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

The hedge fund reportedly sold the bulk of its public-equity portfolio, possibly to Citadel, the hedge fund founded by billionaire Ken Griffin.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

The children kissed their parents and then wanted to kiss Mr. Griffin.

From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin

Related Words

• cat
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