merlion
mer·li·on/ˈmɚˌlaɪən/noun
merlion is spelled M-E-R-L-I-O-N: 7 letters and 3 syllables (mer·li·on). It appears about once in every 26 million words in written English, the 155,937th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, merlion means “Often Merlion: a symbolic creature having the head of a lion and the body of a fish, which is a national symbol of Singapore; an image, statue, or…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of merlion is merlions.
How many letters and syllables are in merlion?
| Letters | 7: M-E-R-L-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: mer·li·on |
| In writing | about once in every 26 million words; the 155,937th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is merlion?
Merlion appears about once in every 26 million words in written English, the 155,937th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce merlion?
- UK /ˈmɜːˌlaɪən/
- US /ˈmɚˌlaɪən/
- /ˌmɜːˈlaɪən/
As a noun (“A depiction of a bird similar to a house martin or swallow…”): /ˈməːlɪ.ən/, /ˈmɚˌlɪ.ən/.
Merlion has 3 syllables, split mer·li·on in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-merlion_(lion).wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-merlion_(heraldry).wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of merlion
- merlions plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does merlion mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Often Merlion: a symbolic creature having the head of a lion and the body of a fish, which is a national symbol of Singapore; an image, statue, or other depiction of this creature.
- 2
A fictional creature of similar make-up.
- 3
A depiction of a bird similar to a house martin or swallow with stylized feet; a martlet.
- 4
rareAlternative form of merlin (“a small falcon, Falco columbarius”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does merlion come from?
From mer- + lion; sense 1 promoted by the Singapore Tourism Board as the name of a statue installed at the mouth of the Singapore River on 15 September 1972.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).