papillon

American

[pap-uh-lon, pa-pee-yawn] / ˈpæp əˌlɒn, pa piˈjɔ̃ /

noun

one of a breed of toy spaniels having a long, silky coat and large, erect ears held so that they resemble the wings of a butterfly.

papillon British

/ ˈpæpɪˌlɒn /

noun

a breed of toy spaniel with large ears

"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

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

papillons

plural

Etymology

Origin of papillon

1905–10; < French: butterfly < Latin pāpiliōn- (stem of pāpiliō )

Vocabulary lists containing papillon

National Spelling Bee '14: Prelims Round 3

Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!

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.

Kiba, her 3.5-pound papillon with a purple Mohawk, pulled 556 pounds on rails.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 20, 2025

The Tibetan spaniel papillon mix was photographed on Instagram wearing a bow tie, with a caption that read: “My mommies are MARRIED!!!! Married?…… yes…. married!!!”

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 11, 2023

Not just any puppy—a pint-size papillon with a black button nose and bushy, perky ears.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 27, 2022

A papillon lived up to its name — “butterfly,” in French — by fluttering around.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 13, 2017

To him a pas de papillon has been an abstract conception.

From The Works of Edgar Allan Poe — Volume 4 by Poe, Edgar Allan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023