griffin

See also: Griffin

English

Alternative forms

• grifon, gryfon (obsolete)
• gryphon
• griffon

Etymology

From Middle English griffoun, from Old French griffon, from Latin gryphus, from Ancient Greek γρύψ (grúps).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɹɪfɪn/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪfɪn

Noun

a griffin (1)

griffin (plural griffins)

1. A mythical beast having the body of a lion and the wings and head of an eagle.
2. A large vulture (Gyps fulvus) found in the mountainous parts of Southern Europe, North Africa, and Asia Minor, supposed to be the "eagle" of the Bible.
3. An English variety of apple.
4. (dated, India) A person who has just arrived from Europe.
   • 1842, The Asiatic journal and monthly register, volume 38, page 40:

     Tables were laid out in the palace, profusely covered with wines and refreshments, in the European style; old hands and griffins, fair sex and civilians, seemed all determined to enjoy themselves […]

5. A cadet newly arrived in British India: half English, half Indian.
6. A watchful guardian, especially a duenna in charge of a young woman.

Derived terms

• bearded griffin (Gypaetus barbatus)
• griffinhood
• griffinish
• griffinism

Descendants

• Chinese Pidgin English: griffin

Translations

mythical beast having the body of a lion and the wings and head of an eagle

• Afrikaans: griffioen (af)
• Albanian: grifë (sq) f
• Arabic: فَتْخَاء f (fatḵāʔ)
• Armenian: արծվառյուծ (arcvaṙyuc)
• Asturian: grifu m
• Azerbaijani: qrifon
• Basque: buitre (eu)
• Belarusian: грыфон m (hryfón)
• Bulgarian: грифон m (grifon)
• Catalan: griu (ca) m, grif m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 獅鷲／狮鹫 (zh) (shījiù)

• Czech: gryf m
• Danish: grif c
• Dutch: griffioen (nl)
• Esperanto: grifo (eo)
• Estonian: greif
• Finnish: aarnikotka (fi), griippi (fi)
• French: griffon (fr)
• Galician: grifón (gl) m
• Georgian: გრიფი (gripi)
• German: Greif (de) m
• Greek: γρύπας (el) m (grýpas)

  Ancient: γρύψ m (grúps)

• Hebrew: גריפון (grifón), כְּרוּב (he) m (kruv)
• Hungarian: griff (hu), griffmadár (hu)
• Indonesian: griffin
• Irish: gríobh f, gríobhán m
• Italian: grifone (it) m, grifo (it) m (obsolete)
• Japanese: グリフォン (ja) (gurifon)
• Korean: 그리핀 (geuripin)
• Latin: gryps (la) m
• Latvian: grifs
• Lithuanian: grifonas
• Low German: Grip
• Macedonian: грифо́н m (grifón)
• Malay: griffin
• Manx: greeu
• Norwegian: griff m
• Old Irish: gríb f
• Persian: شیردال (fa) (širdâl), بشکوچ (fa) (baškuč)
• Polish: gryf (pl)
• Portuguese: grifo (pt) m
• Romanian: grifon (ro) m
• Russian: грифо́н (ru) m (grifón)
• Scottish Gaelic: leòmhann-chraobh m, grìbhean m, grìbhinneach m, grib f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: грифон m

  Roman: grifon (sh) m

• Slovak: gryf
• Slovene: grifin
• Spanish: grifo (es)
• Swahili: grifoni
• Swedish: grip (sv) c
• Turkish: griffon
• Ukrainian: гриф m (hryf)
• Volapük: grifiun

Anagrams

• riffing

Chinese Pidgin English

Etymology

From English griffin (“newcomer to India”).

Noun

griffin

1. A person who had spent less than a year in China.
2. A racing pony in its first season.

References

• Gow, W. S. P. (1924) Gow’s Guide to Shanghai, 1924: A Complete, Concise and Accurate Handbook of the City and District, Especially Compiled for the Use of Tourists and Commercial Visitors to the Far East, Shanghai, page 105: “Griffin: (Anglo-Indian) a newcomer. One with less than a years’^[sic] residence in China. Also a racing pony in his first season. (“China ponies” are bred in Mongolia and brought down annually).”