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Synonyms

mountain lion

American  

noun

  1. cougar.

mountain lion British  

noun

  1. another name for puma

"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

Etymology

Origin of mountain lion

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

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.

Facebook members who responded to the Escondido police online post expressed relief that the mountain lion was not euthanized.

From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026

Zookeepers intend to introduce him soon to a new sibling — Clover, a female mountain lion cub rescued from El Dorado County earlier in March.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

A Glendale nurse practitioner is warning area residents to be on alert for a mountain lion that attacked and dragged away her dog Monday evening just outside her home.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 25, 2026

A mountain lion was spotted in California wine country Sunday, just days after another puma had been captured in San Francisco.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2026

But as with the mountain lion, he just had to stand his ground.

From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman

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.