manticore

American  

[man-ti-kawr, -kohr] / ˈmæn tɪˌkɔr, -ˌkoʊr /

noun

1. a legendary monster with a man's head, horns, a lion's body, and the tail of a dragon or, sometimes, a scorpion.

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manticore British  

/ ˈmæntɪˌkɔː /

noun

1. a monster with a lion's body, a scorpion's tail, and a man's head with three rows of teeth. It roamed the jungles of India and, like the Sphinx, would ask travellers a riddle and kill them when they failed to answer it

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Etymology

Origin of manticore

1300–50; Middle English < Latin mantichōrās < Greek, erroneous reading for martichṓras < Iranian; compare Old Persian martiya- man, Avestan xvar- devour, Persian mardom-khar < man-eating; probably ultimately alluding to the tiger, once common in the Caspian Sea region

Explanation

Watch out for the manticore — the name comes from the Persian word for “man-eater!” A manticore is a mythical creature with a man's head, a lion's body, and a scorpion's tail. And teeth. Lots of teeth. The manticore is a fearsome half-beast half-human, with sharp quills like a porcupine. Fortunately, you're not likely to see a manticore anywhere outside a dream or mythology book, because it's a made-up monster. There are many such creatures in mythology, like a griffin that has a lion’s head and eagle wings, or an Egyptian sphinx with a human head and a lion’s body. But if you see a toothy, man-headed, lion-bodied guy with a sharp tail, it’s a manticore.

Example Sentences

In the first couple hours of Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara I fought and killed goblins, skeletons, gnolls, kobolds, displacer beasts, hellhounds, and a manticore, among myriad other classic D&D beasties.

From Forbes • Jun. 21, 2013

Barbara drew her manticore fleece closely round her shoulders and threw another bundle of twenties on to the fire.

From The Guardian • Jul. 23, 2010

On the third Sunday the poet appears with a manticore, says the gorgon has died "of murder," which brings the same fate to the town's other gorgons, and manticores become the latest craze.

From Time Magazine Archive

They find him dying, surrounded by his unicorn, gorgon and manticore, symbolizing the poet's youth, manhood and old age.

From Time Magazine Archive

The manticore moved a little closer, its claws biting into the wooden deck.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell