hellbender
[hel-ben-der]
- a large salamander, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis, of rivers and streams in eastern North America, having a flat, stout body and broad head.
- Informal. a reckless or headstrong person.
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Origin of hellbender
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for hellbender
Historical Examples of hellbender
But little smaller, and even more ugly in appearance, is the "hellbender," representing the family Amphiumid.
Zoology: The Science of Animal LifeErnest Ingersoll
There are several kinds in North America, some of which, as the hellbender, are a foot or more in length.
The Animal World, A Book of Natural HistoryTheodore Wood
hellbender
- a very large dark grey aquatic salamander, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis, with internal gills: inhabits rivers in E and central US: family Cryptobranchidae
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for hellbender
large salamander of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, 1812, supposedly so called for its ugliness.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper