Grisons

[French gree-zawn]

noun

a canton in E Switzerland. 2747 sq. mi. (7115 sq. km). Capital: Chur.

grison

[grahy-suh n, griz-uh n]

noun

a weasellike carnivore, Galictis vittata, ranging from southern Mexico to Peru, having a grayish-white upper body, a distinctive white stripe across the forehead and ears, and a dark brown face, chest, and legs.

Origin of grison

1790–1800; < French, equivalent to Middle French gris gray (see griseous) + -on diminutive suffix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for grisons

Historical Examples of grisons

It is the capital of the Canton of Grisons, and was the seat of a bishop as early as 562.
The Cathedrals and Churches of the Rhine
Francis Miltoun
I remember, in 1828, to have met one of these in the Grisons, near the upper end of the valley of the Rhine.
A Residence in France
J. Fenimore Cooper
In their period of power, the Grisons masters had treated their Italian dependencies with harshness.
Sketches and Studies in Italy and Greece
John Addington Symonds
Reprinting it in 1879, after eighteen months spent continuously in one high valley of the Grisons, I feel how slight it is.
Sketches and Studies in Italy and Greece
John Addington Symonds
You made us wait long enough; I began to fear that you had taken root in the Grisons.
Samuel Brohl & Company
Victor Cherbuliez

British Dictionary definitions for grisons

Grisons

noun

the French name for Graubünden

grison

noun

either of two musteline mammals, Grison (or Galictis) cuja or G. vittata, of Central and South America, having a greyish back and black face and underparts

Word Origin for grison

C18: from French, from grison grey animal, from Old French gris grey

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012