milk snake

noun

1. any of numerous, usually brightly marked king snakes of the subspecies Lampropeltis triangulum (doliata ), of North America.

milk snake

noun

1. a nonvenomous brown-and-grey North American colubrid snake Lampropeltis doliata, related to the king snakes

Word History and Origins

Origin of milk snake¹

An Americanism dating back to 1790–1800; so called because they were said to suck milk from cows

Example Sentences

It took some sleuthing, but they determined it was not a species prohibited in Oregon or Washington, and they further narrowed its identity to a Honduran milk snake.

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The two most prevalent are the common garter snake and milk snake.

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But after she and her husband caught the snake in a transparent container, an expert told them it was a non-venomous female milk snake common in Massachusetts.

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“Is that a milk snake?” a man asked about a colorful specimen.

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They included members of the northern watersnake, racer, milk snake and queen snake species.

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