LION

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does Lion mean? 

• LION (noun)
  The noun LION has 4 senses:

1. large gregarious predatory feline of Africa and India having a tawny coat with a shaggy mane in the male

2. a celebrity who is lionized (much sought after)

3. (astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Leo

4. the fifth sign of the zodiac; the sun is in this sign from about July 23 to August 22

  Familiarity information: LION used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• LION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Large gregarious predatory feline of Africa and India having a tawny coat with a shaggy mane in the male

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

king of beasts; lion; Panthera leo

Hypernyms ("lion" is a kind of...):

big cat; cat (any of several large cats typically able to roar and living in the wild)

Meronyms (parts of "lion"):

mane (long coarse hair growing from the crest of the animal's neck)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "lion"):

lion cub (a young lion)

lioness (a female lion)

lionet (a small or young lion)

Holonyms ("lion" is a member of...):

genus Panthera; Panthera (lions; leopards; snow leopards; jaguars; tigers; cheetahs; saber-toothed tigers)

pride (a group of lions)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A celebrity who is lionized (much sought after)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

lion; social lion

Hypernyms ("lion" is a kind of...):

celebrity; famous person (a widely known person)

Derivation:

lionize (assign great social importance to)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(astrology) a person who is born while the sun is in Leo

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

Leo; Lion

Hypernyms ("Lion" is a kind of...):

individual; mortal; person; somebody; someone; soul (a human being)

Domain category:

astrology; star divination (a pseudoscience claiming divination by the positions of the planets and sun and moon)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The fifth sign of the zodiac; the sun is in this sign from about July 23 to August 22

Classified under:

Nouns denoting spatial position

Synonyms:

Leo; Leo the Lion; Lion

Instance hypernyms:

house; mansion; planetary house; sign; sign of the zodiac; star sign ((astrology) one of 12 equal areas into which the zodiac is divided)

 Context examples 

"Do you think Oz could give me courage?" asked the Cowardly Lion.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

Taxonomic family which includes domestic and wild cats such as lions and tigers.

(Felidae, NCI Thesaurus)

The ears are small and rounded and there is a large ruff behind the head, which gives it a lion like appearance.

(Chow Chow, NCI Thesaurus)

In which case, our Sun would have gathered the lion's share of dust and gas it seems, leaving its twin dark and stunted.

(Our Sun Could Have Been Born With an Evil Twin Called "Nemesis", The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

He had good schooling in his young days and can speak like a book when so minded; and brave—a lion's nothing alongside of Long John!

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

“It is but six miles to Villefranche, where there are very good quarters at the sign of the 'Lion Rouge.'”

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The king, however, would no longer believe the lion.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

Romantically, Venus will spend the lion’s share of the month in Taurus, which does not do much for you.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

"Good! Didn't you take your story out of _The Sea Lion?_" said Laurie.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

There is a seal of red wax stamped with a crouching lion.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)