snake

American  

[sneyk] / sneɪk /

noun

1. any of numerous limbless, scaly, elongate reptiles of the suborder Serpentes, comprising venomous and nonvenomous species inhabiting tropical and temperate areas.

2. a treacherous person; an insidious enemy.

3. Building Trades.

   1. Also called auger, plumber's snake.  (in plumbing) a device for dislodging obstructions in curved pipes, having a head fed into the pipe at the end of a flexible metal band.

   2. Also called wirepuller.  a length of resilient steel wire, for threading through an electrical conduit so that wire can be pulled through after it.

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verb (used without object)

snaked, snaking

1. to move, twist, or wind.

   The road snakes among the mountains.

verb (used with object)

snaked, snaking

1. to wind or make (one's course, way, etc.) in the manner of a snake.

   to snake one's way through a crowd.

2. to drag or haul, especially by a chain or rope, as a log.

snake British  

/ sneɪk /

noun

1. any reptile of the suborder Ophidia (or Serpentes ), typically having a scaly cylindrical limbless body, fused eyelids, and a jaw modified for swallowing large prey: includes venomous forms such as cobras and rattlesnakes, large nonvenomous constrictors (boas and pythons), and small harmless types such as the grass snake

2. Also called: snake in the grass.  a deceitful or treacherous person

3. anything resembling a snake in appearance or action

4. (in the European Union) a former system of managing a group of currencies by allowing the exchange rate of each of them only to fluctuate within narrow limits

5. a tool in the form of a long flexible wire for unblocking drains

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verb

1. (intr) to glide or move like a snake

2. (tr) to haul (a heavy object, esp a log) by fastening a rope around one end of it

3. (tr) (often foll by out) to pull jerkily

4. (tr) to move in or follow (a sinuous course)

Usage

What else does snake mean? Snake can be slang for a person who acts in a deceitful, underhanded, or backstabbing way.

Other Word Forms

• snakelike adjective

Etymology

Origin of snake

before 1000; Middle English (noun); Old English snaca; cognate with Middle Low German snake, Old Norse snākr

Example Sentences

He could see the other kids snaking along the trail ahead of him, going deeper and deeper into the woods.

From Literature

Mr. Belcher does make for a convincingly commanding warrior, exuding a powerful, coiled energy like a snake ever ready to spring.

From The Wall Street Journal

My father, the hardcore pacifist who can’t even squish a spider, reaches for the power cord snaking from the television to the wall socket.

From Literature

Others wiggled like garden snakes between blades of grass.

From Literature

And I got to stay right where I liked it best: hanging around with Mama and Daddy, Rufus and Lulu, the trees and the mountain and the snakes and the birds.

From Literature

Related Words

• serpent
• vermin