a city in W Georgia.
a male given name.
1300–50; Middle English griffoun < Middle French grifon < Latin grȳphus < Greek grȳp- (stem of grȳ́ps ) “curled, curved, having a hooked nose”
First recorded in 1785–95; origin uncertain
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."
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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
Renaissance and Medieval pieces, and the “quality camp” or “fantasy furniture” he favored — weird and whimsical pieces embellished with mythical creatures; chairs sprouting antlers, torcheres bedecked with gargoyles, commodes atop griffin feet.
From New York Times ● Feb. 27, 2024
Hart said the debate over the griffin missed the bigger picture.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 17, 2021
For every lion there’s a griffin — a lion’s body fused with an eagle’s head, wings and sometimes talons — and for every pelican, a fire-breathing dragon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2019
The griffin seemed full now, and his eyes were fluttering with tiredness.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Thank you, Ken Griffin, for creating an efficient market in which large trades are shockingly inexpensive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
A couple walking along the beach sprinted out of the way as the small plane dropped down, Griffin said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
“We got to be here in order to stay open. If not, we’d close,” Griffin said in an interview with The Times on Tuesday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
The previous record for a fossil auction was "Apex" the Stegosaurus, bought for $44.6 million in 2024 by hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
One red glove grazed his ear, the first time Griffin missed all night.
From "The Contender" by Robert Lipsyte
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
