water snake

American

noun

any of numerous and widely distributed harmless snakes of the genus Natrix, inhabiting areas in or near fresh water.
any of various other snakes living in or frequenting water.
Astronomy. Water Snake, the constellation Hydrus.

water snake British

noun

any of various colubrid snakes that live in or near water, esp any of numerous harmless North American snakes of the genus Natrix, such as N. sipedon

"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

Etymology

Origin of water snake

First recorded in 1595–1605

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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.

"I thought this creature was a water snake, that it would attack everything, that eating it would be bad for you, that it might be poisonous," he recalls.

From BBC • Dec. 27, 2023

Bottles of water are available in stores, but many residents, impoverished by war, depend on bottled water donations from abroad, even as pools of water snake onto streets from leaking mains.

From Reuters • Oct. 22, 2022

A water snake blocked the entrance to the home.

From Washington Post • Aug. 31, 2021

According to the Observer, the snake was identified as a nonvenomous brown water snake by the North Carolina Zoo.

From Fox News • Jun. 6, 2019

Or the time Camilla tried to teach me the box step; or the time Bunny turned the boat over—with Henry and Francis in it—because he thought he saw a water snake?

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023