lioness
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of lioness
1250–1300; Middle English liones, leonesse < Middle French lion ( n ) esse. See lion, -ess
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
But when she realizes Iago has slandered Desdemona she turns into an enraged lioness, roundly exposing and condemning him—and Othello—with righteous fury.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026
In Farsi, this term honors women who are strong, who stand up for their rights and who are trailblazers—courageous, brave and resilient, much like a lioness.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2024
In a suburb on the outskirts of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, a family is processing the news that their pet was taken by a lioness during the night.
From BBC ● May 24, 2024
Tea, 52, is a Massachusetts-to-San Francisco-to-Los Angeles transplant — and the literary lioness who created, among many other cultural lightning rods, the notorious Drag Queen Story Hour.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2023
Blanca fought the destruction and decline with the ferocity of a lioness, but it was clear it was a losing proposition.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
He learned that after a kill, lionesses gorge yet seldom bring food to their young.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
But Taka’s father, a king who prioritizes royal lineage, isn’t pleased, referring to Mufasa as the “stray” and forcing him to be raised by the lionesses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 22, 2024
They are the sentinels of a populations health, specifically the number of animals in a group, and more importantly the ratio of lionesses to lions.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 21, 2023
Noah's Ark Zoo Farm, near Bristol, have been getting their lionesses ready for Sunday's fixture with giant paper mache footballs.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2023
No ordinary clasp would suffice for such a weight, so the greatcloak was held in place by a matched pair of miniature lionesses crouching on his shoulders, as if poised to spring.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
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.
