copperhead
Americannoun
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copperheads
plural
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a venomous snake, Agkistrodon (Ancistrodon ) contortrix, of the eastern and southern U.S., having a light-brown to copper-red body marked with darker bands.
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an extremely venomous but sluggish snake, Denisonia superba, of Australia and Tasmania, having a reddish to black body, depending on the region.
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Copperhead,
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U.S. History. a Northern Democrat who opposed the Civil War, advocating peace and restoration of the Union even if slavery continued.
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Military. a finned, 155 mm cannon-launched U.S. Army artillery shell that homes on the target, using the reflection of a laser beam projected by a forward observer.
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noun
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a venomous reddish-brown snake, Agkistrodon contortrix, of the eastern US: family Crotalidae (pit vipers)
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a venomous reddish-brown Australian elapid snake, Denisonia superba
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informal a Yankee supporter of the South during the Civil War
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of copperhead
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.
See Examples For:
Today you could send me out onto the course with a bag containing a pogo stick, a copperhead and a mackerel, and I wouldn’t notice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention note that outdoor workers who step on or near a copperhead are most likely to be bitten.
From National Geographic ● Jul. 25, 2023
It wasn't long before she had her own run-ins with the slithering creatures—including a bite she received from a copperhead while doing yardwork.
From Scientific American ● Sep. 18, 2022
An average copperhead victim gets between six and ten vials of antivenom, but treatments vary depending on the bite, Greene said.
From Washington Post ● May 31, 2022
How wise of the copperhead to know that Lamont would be back for his tail.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
According to Penn State, warm, humid nights after a period of rain are the best time to see copperheads.
From National Geographic ● Jul. 25, 2023
Farris says he's been doing local relocations for free for a couple of years, mostly rattlesnakes and copperheads.
From Scientific American ● Sep. 18, 2022
Copperheads give birth to live young, and baby copperheads are born with bright yellow tips on their tails.
From Washington Post ● May 31, 2022
Officials did not say what type of snake was thought to have bitten the animal, but copperheads and rattlesnakes have been found on the Outer Banks, The Charlotte Observer reported.
From Washington Times ● May 26, 2020
Turned out, no, copperheads can’t beat honey badgers.
From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds
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.
