A mastiff is a large, powerful, short-haired dog. a large, strong dog, often used to guard houses (mastin, from mansuetus ). Breed of powerful but gentle dog of Europe and Asia dating to 3000 BC. Mastiffs fought bears, lions, tigers, bulls, and gladiators in Roman arenas and were used in English bull-and bear-baiting rings. The mastiff stands 28-30 in. (70-75 cm) tall and weighs 165-185 lbs (75-85 kg). It has a broad head, short dark muzzle, and dark drooping ears. Its short coat is apricot, silver fawn, or brindled. The bullmastiff, a bulldog-mastiff crossbreed standing 24-27 in. (61-69 cm) tall and weighing 100-130 lbs (45-59 kg), is used as a police and guard dog
an old breed of powerful deep-chested smooth-coated dog used chiefly as a watchdog and guard dog
There are various strains, differing in form and color, and characteristic of different countries
Any of various snub-nosed bats of the family Molossidae, found in warm regions of most parts of the world and having narrow wings and brown, gray, or black fur
() An aberrant derivation from Old French mastin (modern French mâtin), from Vulgar Latin *mansuetīnus (“tamed (animal)”), from Latin mansuetus (“tamed”).