1470–80; < Medieval Latin (Geoffrey of Monmouth) Uthyrpendragun Uther Pendragon, taken as Medieval Welsh pen ( n ) head + *dragun < Late Latin dracōnēs, plural of dracō military standard, Latin: serpent, dragon (hence, chief or head standard), though the compound is unattested in Welsh sources outside of translations of Geoffrey of Monmouth
In ancient times, one type of British or Welsh king was known as a pendragon. This pendragon was typically a warrior and powerful leader. When you come across the word pendragon, it's typically capitalized and referring to a specific prince or king, either in history or literature. Most famously, the legendary King Arthur is sometimes described with the title pendragon. The word shows up today in fantasy novels and role playing games. In Welsh, pendragon or Pen Ddraig means "chief war leader."
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He would have gratefully given all his patrimonial domains to one who should inform him what pendragon or druid it was who set up the first stone on Salisbury plain.
From Memoirs of Carwin, the Biloquist by Brown, Charles Brockden
Her father was Uther the pendragon, and her mother Ygerna, widow of Gorloïs.
From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham
There is a table so called at Winchester, and Henry VIII. showed it to François I. as the very table made by Merlin for Uther the pendragon.
From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham
Aurelius, elder brother of Uther the pendragon, and uncle of Arthur, but he died before the hero was born.
From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham
He went on to have a recurring role in sketch show Little Britain, play king Uther Pendragon in the BBC's Merlin, and appear as former football club owner Rupert Mannion in Ted Lasso.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
But other projects, like “Terror on the Prairie,” “Shut In” or “The Pendragon Cycle,” the biggest bet we’ve ever taken — they’re notable for what they don’t say rather than for what they do.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 19, 2025
“My film school would submit films every year and it had always been something to aspire to,” Pendragon said.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 22, 2023
Smartly, Pendragon pulls back from beyond the frame to show a time-lapse of his own hands in the act of creation, elevating the meta-gag into a meditation on how we spend our hours.
From New York Times ● Feb. 16, 2023
There he had been, chattering away about Uther Pendragon and Round Tables and battles and Guenever and sword sheaths and things past and things to come—but he had forgotten the most important thing* of afl.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
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.
