viper
Americannoun
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any of several venomous Old World snakes of the genus Vipera, especially V. berus, a small snake common in northern Eurasia.
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any related snakes belonging to the family Viperidae, characterized by erectile, venom-conducting fangs.
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any of various venomous or supposedly venomous snakes.
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a malignant or spiteful person.
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a false or treacherous person.
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Military. Viper, a 9-pound (4-kilogram), shoulder-launched, unguided U.S. Army antitank rocket with an effective range of 273 yards (250 meters).
idioms
noun
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any venomous Old World snake of the family Viperidae, esp any of the genus Vipera (the adder and related forms), having hollow fangs in the upper jaw that are used to inject venom
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any of various other snakes, such as the horned viper
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See pit viper
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a malicious or treacherous person
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of viper
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin vīpera, variant of unattested vīvipera, noun use of feminine of unattested vīviper, later (as re-formation) vīviparus “bringing forth live young”; see vivi-, -parous
Explanation
A viper is a certain type of poisonous snake. The most common vipers in the United States are rattlesnakes and water moccasins. Vipers are found in most places on earth and they're a diverse group with over 200 species. Vipers have specialized pits on their faces that can detect heat that's emitted from their prey, which gives them a big advantage to sense and catch their prey quickly. Viper is a scientific name for a particular family of snakes that poison others by biting them with hollow fangs that inject venom. And because of that, viper (and snake) are often used to describe spiteful, disloyal, or back-stabbing people.
Vocabulary lists containing viper
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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.
In 2019, officials at the Chennai airport seized a horned pit viper snake, five Iguanas, four blue-tongued skinks, three green tree frogs and 22 Egyptian tortoises from a man travelling from Thailand.
From BBC • Jun. 2, 2025
Was it a deadly viper or a harmless python?
From Science Magazine • Mar. 8, 2024
Even as you read this, Arteaga’s group is gathering evidence that there’s at least one more eyelash viper species to add to the ranks.
From National Geographic • Feb. 13, 2024
A serpent-tongued viper might call these true believers goobers, rubes, suckers, and dupes, but what good would it do?
From Salon • Jan. 30, 2024
It finally met its end in a curious way: a young viper bit it.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
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.
