A heraldic term for a mythical beast resembling a dragon or winged creature used in medieval coat of arms and heraldic designs.
Possibly from Old French 'alphine' or a variant of 'dragon,' used in medieval heraldry to describe fantastical creatures adorning noble families' shields and crests.
Medieval heralds needed names for imaginary monsters on shields—'alphyn' is one of those wonderfully weird heraldic creatures that let knights show off their creativity and status!
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.