1
: any of numerous limbless scaled reptiles (suborder Serpentes synonym Ophidia) with a long tapering body and with salivary glands often modified to produce venom which is injected through grooved or tubular fangs
2
: a worthless or treacherous fellow
3
: something (such as a plumber's snake) resembling a snake
snaked; snaking
1
: to wind (one's way, one's body in crawling, etc.) in the manner of a snake
2
: to move (something, such as logs) by dragging
: to crawl, move, or extend silently, secretly, or sinuously
Examples of snake in a Sentence
Noun
I thought she was my friend, but she turned out to be a snake in the grass.
snakes are cold-blooded, so they regulate their body temperature by alternately basking in sunlight and seeking shade
Verb
The road snakes through the mountains.
Cables snaked across the floor.
Technicians snaked cables through the set.
He snaked his way through the crowd.
Recent Examples on the Web
Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 31 Mar. 2025
And Chelsea has been ominously repeating that bad things happen in threes, and she's already almost died two times, when the hotel boutique was robbed and when Rick set those poisonous snakes free.
—Eliana Dockterman, Time, 31 Mar. 2025
Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 1 Apr. 2025
At the antiques shop, overflowing with bronze sculptures and ornate lamps, a train snakes through to dispense tea.
—Rachel Sherman, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for snake
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Noun
Overall, the new species looks like a snake with a pair of seemingly out-of-proportion legs midway down its body.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 31 Mar. 2025
And Chelsea has been ominously repeating that bad things happen in threes, and she's already almost died two times, when the hotel boutique was robbed and when Rick set those poisonous snakes free.
—Eliana Dockterman, Time, 31 Mar. 2025
Verb
Developed over two years, the Serpenti Aeterna watch snaking around the wrist features a clasp closure mechanism and signature hexagonal scales etched in the inner contour.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 1 Apr. 2025
At the antiques shop, overflowing with bronze sculptures and ornate lamps, a train snakes through to dispense tea.
—Rachel Sherman, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for snake
Cite this Entry
“Snake.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snake. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
snake
1 of 2 noun1
: any of numerous limbless reptiles that have a long body and salivary glands often capable of producing venom which is injected through fangs
2
: a mean or treacherous person
snake
2 of 2 verb
snaked; snaking
: to crawl, wind, or move like a snake
Medical Definition
snake
noun
: any of numerous limbless scaled reptiles (suborder Serpentes synonym Ophidia) with a long tapering body and with salivary glands often modified to produce venom which is injected through grooved or tubular fangs
Geographical Definition
Snake
geographical name
river 1038 miles (1670 kilometers) long in the northwestern U.S. flowing from northwestern Wyoming across southern Idaho and into the Columbia River in Washington
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