Lyon
name, noun ·2 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 Obsolete spelling of lion. alt-of, obsolete
"The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bolde as a lyon."
- 1 The third largest city in France; the capital of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
"Lyon was not a very cheerful town at night. It was a big, heavy, solid-money town, probably fine if you had money and liked that sort of town. For years I had heard about the wonderful chicken in the restaurants there, but we had eaten mutton instead."
- 2 A surname transferred from the nickname.
- 3 A river in Glen Lyon, Perth and Kinross council area, Scotland, which joins the River Tay; in full, the River Lyon.
- 4 A metropolitan authority in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France, outside of Rhône department, which includes the city of Lyon and most of its suburbs; in full, the Metropolis of Lyon.
- 5 An unincorporated community and township in Franklin County, Missouri, United States.
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- 6 A town in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States, named after the French city.
- 7 A number of other townships in the United States, listed under Lyon Township.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"I am in Lyon, but maybe I'll go to Paris for hunting a job."
Etymology
From French Lyon (supplanting earlier Lyons, derived from the Old French nominative form), from the Roman name, Latin Lugdūnum (“fort of Lug”), named after Lugus, a Celtic deity, from Proto-Celtic *Lugus.
From Middle English lyon (“lion”), as a nickname, or from a sign often used outside of roadside inns and adopted as a family name by those who lived there (compare Bush). Doublet of Leo, leu, lev, and lion.
Related phrases
More for "lyon"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.