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snake

(snāk)

1. Any of numerous scaly, legless, sometimes venomous squamate reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (or Ophidia), having a long, tapering, cylindrical body and flexible jaws.

2. A treacherous person. Also called snake in the grass.

3. A long, highly flexible metal wire or coil used for cleaning drains. Also called plumber's snake.

v. snaked, snak·ing, snakes

v.tr.

1. To drag or pull lengthwise, especially to drag with a rope or chain.

2. To pull with quick jerks.

3. To move in a sinuous or gliding manner: tried to snake the rope along the ledge.

v.intr.

To move with a sinuous motion: The river snakes through the valley.

[Middle English, from Old English snaca.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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