cerastes
Americannoun
plural
cerastesnoun
Etymology
Origin of cerastes
1768; < New Latin < Greek kerástēs literally, something horned, equivalent to kerat- stem of kéras horn + -tēs noun suffix; earlier in sense “asp,” Middle English < Medieval Latin, Latin, as above
Vocabulary lists containing cerastes
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The rattlesnake Crotalus cerastes is venomous to humans.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 21, 2022
He is called the cerastes, and is venomous, I believe, though not one of the worst kinds of poisonous snakes.
From Hair-Breadth Escapes The Adventures of Three Boys in South Africa by Adams, H.C.
"Parum Lutherus ac Erasmus differunt Serpens uterque est, plenus atro toxico; Sed ille mordet ut cerastes in via, Hic fraudulentus mordet in silentio."
From Notes and Queries, Number 02, November 10, 1849 by Various
The original term here is shephiphon, and is understood by several authors to denote the cerastes, a very poisonous kind of viper, distinguished by having horns.
From Palestine or the Holy Land From the Earliest Period to the Present Time by Russell, Michael
Judge his anguish then, and my disappointment, when, seven days before her twenty-first birthday, she was bitten by a cerastes, and her body died.
From Weapons of Mystery by Hocking, Joseph
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
