dragon

noun

drag·​on ˈdra-gən 

1

archaic : a huge serpent

2

: a mythical animal usually represented as a monstrous winged and scaly serpent or saurian with a crested head and enormous claws

3

: a violent, combative, or very strict person

4

capitalized : draco

5

: something or someone formidable or baneful

dragonish

ˈdra-gə-nish 

adjective

Examples of dragon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Other recent salmonella outbreaks have been linked to pet bearded dragons, backyard poultry and basil, the agency says. —Ahjané Forbes, USA TODAY, 21 Dec. 2024

Robert Redford delivers folksy wisdom as a local eccentric who once had his own dragon encounter, and even Karl Urban’s greedy logger is more of a nuisance than an outright villain. —Josh Bell, Vulture, 20 Dec. 2024

Even with Weta’s motion-capture transformations from actor to dragon or actor to ape, the usual way of shooting is to make the environment for motion capture as controlled as possible. —Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 19 Dec. 2024

Piff, whose real name is John van der Put, is best known as a magician and comedian who performs in a dragon onesie. —Joelle Goldstein, People.com, 11 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French dragun, from Latin dracon-, draco serpent, dragon, from Greek drakōn serpent; akin to Old English torht bright, Greek derkesthai to see, look at

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing dragon

• dragon fruit
• dragon lady
• dragon's blood
• dragon's teeth
• green dragon
• Komodo dragon

Kids Definition

dragon

noun

drag·​on ˈdrag-ən 

1

: an imaginary animal usually pictured as a huge serpent or lizard with wings and large claws

2

capitalized : draco

Etymology

Middle English dragon "dragon," from early French dragun (same meaning), from Latin dracon-, draco "serpent, dragon," from Greek drakōn "serpent" — related to rankle