salamander

American  

[sal-uh-man-der] / ˈsæl əˌmæn dər /

noun

salamanders plural

1. any tailed amphibian of the order Caudata, having a soft, moist, scaleless skin, typically aquatic as a larva and semiterrestrial as an adult: several species are endangered.

2. a mythical being, especially a lizard or other reptile, thought to be able to live in fire.

3. any of various portable stoves or burners.

4. Metallurgy. a mass of iron that accumulates at the bottom of a blast furnace as a result of the escape of molten metal through the hearth.

5. a metal plate or disk with a handle, heated and held over pastry, casserole crusts, etc., to brown or glaze it.

6. an oven usually heated from the top and bottom by gas, for cooking, browning, and glazing food.

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salamander British  

/ ˈsæləˌmændə, ˌsæləˈmændrɪn /

noun

1. any of various urodele amphibians, such as Salamandra salamandra ( European fire salamander ) of central and S Europe (family Salamandridae ). They are typically terrestrial, have an elongated body, and only return to water to breed

2. any urodele amphibian

3. a mythical reptile supposed to live in fire

4. an elemental fire-inhabiting being

5. any person or thing able to exist in fire or great heat

6. metallurgy a residue of metal and slag deposited on the walls of a furnace

7. a portable stove used to dry out a building under construction

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Synonym Usage

See sylph.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• salamanderlike
  adjective
• salamandrine
  adjective
• salamandroid
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• salamanders
  plural

Etymology

Origin of salamander

1300–50; Middle English salamandre from Latin salamandra from Greek salamándrā

Explanation

A salamander is a small amphibian that looks a lot like a lizard and lives mainly on land. They look cute in a terrarium and less cute on your bathroom floor. Originally, the salamander was believed to have an amazing ability: that it could survive fire, and some said it lived in fire. That turned out to be a myth, but the salamander does possess the ability to live on land or in water, because it is an amphibian. Salamanders look a lot like lizards and a little like newts. They live most of the time on the land and only go into water when it's time to breed.

Example Sentences

In appearance, the creature may remind people of a modern Chinese Giant Salamander, particularly when looking at its head shape.

From Science Daily • May 6, 2026

"Superficially, Arenaerpeton looks a lot like the modern Chinese Giant Salamander, especially in the shape of its head," Mr. Hart says.

From Science Daily • May 6, 2026

These will soon be joined by the Pentland and Salamander projects, along with the world's largest, the 560MW Green Volt project, which previously secured funding from the UK government.

From BBC • Jan. 14, 2026

The awards-season favorite “The Imitation Game” had been playing to packed crowds when Koch walked through the cozy-elegant lobby of the Salamander Resort and Spa, the festival’s hub in Virginia’s Loudoun County.

From Washington Post • Oct. 6, 2022

The Salamander boomed to a halt, throwing men off in slips and clumsy hops.

From "Fahrenheit 451" by Ray Bradbury

Related Words

• frog
• toad