mamba

American

[mahm-bah] / ˈmɑm bɑ /

noun

any of several long, slender, arboreal snakes of the genus Dendroaspis, of central and southern Africa, the bite of which is often fatal.

mamba British

/ ˈmæmbə /

noun

any aggressive partly arboreal tropical African venomous elapid snake of the genus Dendroaspis, esp D. angusticeps ( green and black mambas )

"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

Etymology

Origin of mamba

1860–65; < Nguni; compare Zulu imamba, izimamba

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.

Jardine, Khalek and their colleagues tested the effect of 95Mat5 on mice injected with toxins from the many-banded krait, Indian spitting cobra, black mamba and king cobra.

From Science Daily • Feb. 21, 2024

In real life, the enclosure filmed is home to a black mamba snake.

From BBC • Nov. 20, 2021

In April, Gifford said he was bitten by a West African green mamba while cleaning the enclosures in his home.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 2, 2021

Quarantine, asymptomatic, mamba, kraken, defund, antebellum, irregardless, icon, schadenfreude and malarkey were also runners up based on lookup spikes around specific events.

From Washington Times • Nov. 30, 2020

I know what it is: it’s a green mamba snake away up in the tree.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023