python

[ pahy-thon, -thuhn ]

/ ˈpaɪ θɒn, -θən /

Save This Word!

noun

any of several Old World boa constrictors of the subfamily Pythoninae, often growing to a length of more than 20 feet (6 meters): the Indian python, Python molurus, is endangered.

QUIZ

IS THIS EIGHTH GRADE VOCAB QUIZ FEASIBLE FOR YOU?

Prove that nothing is amiss with your vocabulary skills by taking this quiz on popular eighth grade vocabulary.

Question 1 of 10

What does the word “confiscate” mean?

to praise or celebrate

to gather together

to seize by or as if by authority; appropriate summarily

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Origin of python

1580–90; <New Latin; special use of Python¹

Words nearby python

Pythiad, Pythian, Pythian Games, Pythias, pythogenic, python, Pythonesque, pythoness, pythonic, pyuria, pyx

Other definitions for python (2 of 4)

python²

[ pahy-thon, -thuhn ]

/ ˈpaɪ θɒn, -θən /

noun

a spirit or demon.

a person who is possessed by a spirit and prophesies by its aid.

Origin of python

1595–1605; <Late Greek pȳ́thōn; relation to Python¹ unclear

Other definitions for python (3 of 4)

Python¹

[ pahy-thon, -thuhn ]

/ ˈpaɪ θɒn, -θən /

noun Classical Mythology.

a large dragon who guarded the chasm at Delphi from which prophetic vapors emerged. He was finally killed by Apollo, who established his oracle on the site.

Origin of Python

1390–1400; Middle English, from Latin Pȳthōn, from Greek Pȳ́thōn

Other definitions for python (4 of 4)

Python²

[ pahy-thon ]

/ ˈpaɪ θɒn /

Digital Technology, Trademark.

an open-source, high-level programming language known for its readability and support for multiple programming styles, and, due to its many libraries, a large range of applications.

Origin of Python

Coined in 1989 by Python's creator Guido van Rossum after the comedy troupe Monty Python

How to use python in a sentence

The maleo’s ability to take flight right away helps it avoid being snapped up by the island’s various predators, from monitor lizards to pythons.
Pterosaurs may have been able to fly as soon as they hatched|Carolyn Gramling|July 22, 2021|Science News
After a python swallows a meal, the snake’s metabolic rate spikes, rising to 45 times as high as its resting metabolic rate to break down the prey.
Two new books investigate why it’s so hard to define life|Erin Garcia de Jesus|March 17, 2021|Science News
But most of all he loved Monty Python and would regularly repeat their hilarious sketches verbatim.
When Gary Wright Met George Harrison: Dream Weaver, John and Yoko, and More|Gary Wright|September 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This being Monty Python, the answer should have been obvious—their memories are no more; their line retention has ceased to be.
Monty Python Forgot Their Lines on Opening Night, but Who Cares?|Nico Hines|July 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Contrary to what we had all thought for the past 33 years, Monty Python is not dead.
Long Live Monty Python: The British Comedy Troupe’s Hilarious Reunion|Tom Sykes|November 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The press release had stated that the show would feature “classic Python material with modern topical twists.”
Monty Python—Not Dead Yet|Tom Sykes|November 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He gives Carl back his gun and holsters his own famous Colt Python back around his waist.
The Walking Dead ‘Infected’ Recap: There Will Be Exploding Faces|Melissa Leon|October 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I saw the trunk curling back and creeping up to me like a python crawling up a hillside to coil around its prey.
Kari the Elephant|Dhan Gopal Mukerji
Did you ever see the great python that died lately at the Zoo climb his ragged staff of a tree?
Mushroom Town|Oliver Onions
He became to her thought a python whose coils were about her person, insufferable to the gaze backward.
Lord Ormont and his Aminta, Complete|George Meredith
It is restored to represent the god at the moment when he has shot the arrow that slays the Python.
Stories of Old Greece and Rome|Emilie Kip Baker
Anaconda, an-a-kon′da, n. a large South American water-snake of the Python family, closely related to the boa-constrictor.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various

British Dictionary definitions for python (1 of 2)

python

/ (ˈpaɪθən) /

noun

any large nonvenomous snake of the family Pythonidae of Africa, S Asia, and Australia, such as Python reticulatus (reticulated python). They can reach a length of more than 20 feet and kill their prey by constriction

Derived forms of python

pythonic (paɪˈθɒnɪk), adjective

Word Origin for python

C16: New Latin, after Python

British Dictionary definitions for python (2 of 2)

Python

/ (ˈpaɪθən) /

noun

Greek myth a dragon, killed by Apollo at Delphi

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