rattlesnake

[rat-l-sneyk] /ˈræt lˌsneɪk/
noun
1.
any of several New World pit vipers of the genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, having a rattle composed of a series of horny, interlocking elements at the end of the tail.
Origin
1620-30, Americanism; rattle1 + snake
Examples from the web for rattlesnake
  • Its only excitement was an annual rattlesnake round-up.
  • But several of them were active in the sluggish rattlesnake fashion.
  • It seems possible that the mouth was opened wide and stabbing blows delivered, almost as a rattlesnake strikes with raised fangs.
  • And other snakes are set to join the ranks of the sequenced, including the garter snake, the rattlesnake and the king cobra.
  • It is a story of a personal interaction with a rattlesnake and the discovery leading from it.
  • The venomous prairie rattlesnake also roams freely in the park and can strike if provoked.
  • It's said that her hand movements are quicker than the striking speed of a rattlesnake.
  • Summer inhabitants include the occasional rattlesnake and scorpion.
  • The rattlesnake is known for the rattle at the end of its tail.
  • Jim's has thousands of imported canned goods, and meats ranging from ostrich to boar to rattlesnake.
British Dictionary definitions for rattlesnake

rattlesnake

/ˈrætəlˌsneɪk/
noun
1.
any of the venomous New World snakes constituting the genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, such as C. horridus (black or timber rattlesnake): family Crotalidae (pit vipers). They have a series of loose horny segments on the tail that are vibrated to produce a buzzing or whirring sound
Word Origin and History for rattlesnake
n.

1620s, from rattle + snake (n.).