diamondback

American  

[dahy-muhnd-bak, dahy-uh-] / ˈdaɪ məndˌbæk, ˈdaɪ ə- /

adjective

1. bearing diamond-shaped marks, designs, or configurations on the back.

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noun

1. diamondback rattlesnake.

2. diamondback terrapin.

3. diamondback moth.

diamondback British  

/ ˈdaɪəməndˌbæk /

noun

1. Also called: diamondback terrapin.   diamondback turtle.  any edible North American terrapin of the genus Malaclemys, esp M. terrapin, occurring in brackish and tidal waters and having diamond-shaped markings on the shell: family Emydidae

2. a large North American rattlesnake, Crotalus adamanteus, having cream-and-grey diamond-shaped markings

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Etymology

Origin of diamondback

First recorded in 1810–20; diamond + back ¹

Example Sentences

Common rattlesnakes in California include the Mojave, northern Pacific, red, sidewinder, speckled, and western diamondback rattlesnakes.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 2026

It turned out to be a diamondback terrapin.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 30, 2025

Researchers subjected the skeletal remains of pond sliders, diamondback terrapins, painted turtles and box turtles to incremental increases in mechanical forces and measured where and how the shells began to buckle.

From New York Times • Dec. 26, 2022

But existing experimental permits already enable researchers to grow more than enough engineered Camelina to meet the current worldwide demand for pheromone control of diamondback moths and cotton bollworms, says Agenor Mafra-Neto, CEO of ISCA.

From Science Magazine • Sep. 1, 2022

It had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a ten-foot-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind.

From "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan