prairie rattlesnake

noun

1. a rattlesnake, Crotalus viridis viridis, of the prairies of western North America.

Word History and Origins

Origin of prairie rattlesnake¹

An Americanism dating back to 1810–20

Example Sentences

Five minutes after starting on a trail at Theodore Roosevelt National Park, I nearly stepped on a prairie rattlesnake.

From Outside Online

It is not a pleasant feeling to wake up and find a three-foot prairie rattlesnake coiled up against one's stomach.

From Project Gutenberg