cerastes

American  

[suh-ras-teez] / səˈræs tiz /

noun

plural

cerastes

1. any of several small vipers of the genus Cerastes, including the horned viper, that have a sideways looping motion like that of a sidewinder and inhabit deserts of northern Africa and southwestern Asia.

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cerastes British  

/ səˈræstiːz /

noun

1. any venomous snake of the genus Cerastes, esp the horned viper

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Etymology

Origin of cerastes

1768; < New Latin < Greek kerástēs literally, something horned, equivalent to kerat- stem of kéras horn + -tēs noun suffix; earlier in sense “asp,” Middle English < Medieval Latin, Latin, as above

Example Sentences

The rattlesnake Crotalus cerastes is venomous to humans.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 21, 2022

America is the country of the rattlesnake; Africa, of the cerastes; and Asia, of the hooded snake, or cobra di capello.

From Principles of Geology or, The Modern Changes of the Earth and its Inhabitants Considered as Illustrative of Geology by Lyell, Charles, Sir

In Egypt, on the other hand, the cobra, the asp, and the cerastes are as numerous as ever, and are much dreaded by all the natives except the professional snake charmers.

From The Earth as Modified by Human Action by Marsh, George P.

Some think one hieroglyph is a cerastes, but Dr. Birch says the group probably consisted of a harpoon and three vertical lines—a common sign of plurality.

From Cleopatra's Needle A History of the London Obelisk, with an Exposition of the Hieroglyphics by King, James

Judge his anguish then, and my disappointment, when, seven days before her twenty-first birthday, she was bitten by a cerastes, and her body died.

From Weapons of Mystery by Hocking, Joseph