sphinx

A noun referring to a person who is mysterious or difficult to understand, or to a large ancient Egyptian stone statue with a lion's body and a human head.

• 🇫🇷Nom désignant une grande statue de l'Égypte antique au corps de lion et à la tête humaine, ou une personne énigmatique et difficile à comprendre.

1. Mythological creature B1 formal

   A mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human, often associated with ancient Egyptian and Greek mythology.

   • The Great Sphinx of Giza is one of the most famous monuments in the world.
   • In Greek mythology, the Sphinx posed a riddle to travelers.
   • The ancient Egyptians built sphinxes to guard temples and tombs.

   🇫🇷sphinx (créature mythologique)

2. Mysterious or enigmatic person B2 formal

   A person who is difficult to understand or who keeps their thoughts and intentions secret.

   • He remained a sphinx, never revealing his true feelings.
   • The politician was a sphinx, giving no clear answers to the reporters.
   • She is a sphinx when it comes to her personal life.

   🇫🇷Personne énigmatique

   Synonymes: closed bookenigmamysterypuzzleriddle

• sphinxes plural form
• sphinxes' possessive plural form
• sphinx's possessive singular form