reptilian

[ rep-til-ee-uh n, -til-yuh n ]

/ rɛpˈtɪl i ən, -ˈtɪl yən /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR reptilian ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

belonging or pertaining to the Reptilia.

groveling, debased, or despicable; contemptible.

mean; treacherous; harmful.

noun

a reptile.

Nearby words

Origin of reptilian

1840–50; < New Latin Reptili(a) reptiles (plural of rēptile, neuter of Late Latin rēptilis; see reptile) + -an

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for reptilian

Still, Spacey endows Frank with a reptilian intelligence, a cunning that gives him an edge over everyone he encounters.
David Fincher, Beau Willimon & Kate Mara On Netflix’s ‘House of Cards’|Jace Lacob|January 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But when meets Nixon and they discuss football in the back of a limousine, he is able to humanize the reptilian president.
What 10 Books to Read for the Election Season: Cicero, Vidal and More|David Masciotra|September 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST
We have already seen that the embryonic bird has the long tail of his reptilian ancestor.
The Whence and the Whither of Man|John Mason Tyler
In the Triassic period the exuberance of reptilian life which marked the Permian was continued.
The Outline of Science, Vol. 1 (of 4)|J. Arthur Thomson

A rope had upheld a colossal, leering, reptilian head while men with rifles posed self-consciously beside the dead creature.
The Fifth-Dimension Tube|William Fitzgerald Jenkins
In the Triassic occur the first mammalia with conical, round, reptilian teeth.
Degeneracy|Eugene S. Talbot
At such times he might hear a crashing and splashing and see a reptilian head loom gigantically at him through the fog.
The Red Hell of Jupiter|Paul Ernst

British Dictionary definitions for reptilian

reptilian

/ (rɛpˈtɪlɪən) /

adjective

of, relating to, resembling, or characteristic of reptiles

mean or treacherous; contemptiblereptilian behaviour

noun

a less common name for reptile

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

Word Origin and History for reptilian