rat snake

American

noun

any of several New and Old World colubrid snakes, of the genus Elaphe, that feed chiefly on small mammals and birds.

rat snake British

noun

any of various nonvenomous rodent-eating colubrid snakes, such as Elaphe obsoleta of North America and Ptyas mucosus of Asia

"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 rat snake

First recorded in 1855–60

Compare meaning

How does rat-snake compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

rat snake vs. corn snake

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.

See Examples For:

rat snake

A TikTok of “The Traitors” and “Love Island” cast member Rob Rausch handling a rat snake.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026

The reptile, believed to be a non-venomous rat snake, was ushered off the grounds before the game between Galle Titans and Dambulla Aura resumed.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2023

“The dearest baby gray rat snake was crossing our driveway the other day just as the dog and I were leaving for a walk.”

From New York Times ● Jul. 15, 2023

But now in his dreams, he'll be stepping over a snake and think, “Oh, that's a rat snake or that's a coral” and just walk away.

From Scientific American ● Sep. 18, 2022

In the undergrowth a rat snake rubbed itself against a glistening stone.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy

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