SPHINX

noun (plural ~es or sphinges) Etymology: Latin, from Greek Sphinx, Sphix Date: 15th century 1. a winged female monster in Greek mythology having a woman's head and a lion's body and noted for killing anyone unable to answer its riddle, an enigmatic or mysterious person , an ancient Egyptian image in the form of a recumbent lion having a man's head, a ram's head, or a hawk's head, ~like adjective