rattler
Americannoun
-
something that rattles
-
an informal name for rattlesnake
Etymology
Origin of rattler
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at rattle 1, -er 1
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.
The first rattler occurred at a depth of 3.4 miles, and the largest quake was shallower, at 0.1 miles.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 20, 2024
Speaking of summer heat, a sweaty, off-the-deep-end Al Pacino generates plenty of his own in this nerve rattler from Sidney Lumet.
From New York Times • Jun. 3, 2023
On more than one occasion he's found himself under a house or a trailer in the wee hours of darkness tracking down a copperhead or rattler that needs to be moved.
From Scientific American • Sep. 18, 2022
The cause was complications after being bitten by a captive rattler at his home and research facility in Shepherdstown, W.Va., said his daughter Claire Martin.
From Washington Post • Aug. 10, 2022
Papa knew better than to open his mouth, because once Mama had made up her mind like that, she wouldn’t have budged an inch from a buzzing rattler.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
