dragon

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: B1 — Intermediate

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a creature of Teutonic mythology; usually represented as breathing fire and having a reptilian body and sometimes wings
  2. noun a fiercely vigilant and unpleasant woman
  3. noun a faint constellation twisting around the north celestial pole and lying between Ursa Major and Cepheus

Etymology

From Middle English dragoun, borrowed from Old French dragon, from Latin dracō(n), from Ancient Greek δράκων (drákōn, “a serpent of huge size, a python, a dragon”), probably from δέρκομαι (dérkomai, “to see clearly”). Displaced Old English wyrm, whence modern worm. Mostly displaced Old English draca (whence modern drake)—from the same Latin source, as are Draco, Dracon, dracone, and dragoon.

In classic literature

Synonyms

firedrake

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