name
Meaning 1
Synonym of Serpens (a constellation).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Serpens
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
serpent
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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Received-Pronunciation: /ˈsɜːpənt/
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General-American: /ˈsɝpənt/
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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CMU ARPABET: S ER1 P AH0 N T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
name
Meaning 2
Synonym of Satan.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Satan
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
A snake.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, literary
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 4
A subtle, treacherous, malicious person.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: figuratively
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: backstabber, double-crosser, betrayer, cockatrice, quisling, rat, ratter, recreant, renegade, serpent, snake, snake in the grass, swike, traitor, treacher, treacherer, treasonist, turntippet, withersake, wolf in sheep's clothing
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 5
An obsolete wind instrument in the brass family, whose shape is suggestive of a snake (Wikipedia article).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: entertainment, lifestyle, music
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 6
A kind of firework with a serpentine motion.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 7
A snake-like monster, such as a dragon or sea serpent.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: fantasy, human-sciences, mysticism, mythology, philosophy, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 8
To wind or meander
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive, obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 9
To encircle.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete, transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 10
limbless scaly elongate reptile; some are venomous
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: snake, ophidian
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: diapsid, diapsid reptile
Narrower terms: colubrid snake, colubrid, blind snake, worm snake, constrictor, elapid, elapid snake, sea snake, viper
noun
Meaning 11
an obsolete bass cornet; resembles a snake
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: cornet, horn, trumpet, trump
noun
Meaning 12
a firework that moves in serpentine manner when ignited
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: firework, pyrotechnic
History
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *serp- Proto-Indo-European *sérpeti Proto-Italic *serpō Latin serpō Latin serpēns Old French serpentbor. Middle English serpent English serpent From Middle English serpent, from Old French serpent (“snake, serpent”), from Latin serpēns (“snake”), present active participle of serpere (“to creep, crawl”), from Proto-Italic *serpō, from Proto-Indo-European *serp-. In this sense, displaced native Old English nǣdre (“snake, serpent”), whence Modern English adder. Compare Sanskrit सर्प (sarpa, “snake”), which is a descendant of the same Proto-Indo-European word as serpent.
Across languages
Translations
101 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Arabic: ثُعْبَان (ṯuʕbān) — snake
- Arabic: حَنَش (ḥanaš) — snake
- Arabic: حَيَّة (ḥayya) — snake
- Arabic: أَفْعَى (ʔafʕā) — snake
- Arabic: تعبان (tiʕbān) — snake
- Armenian: օձ (ōj) — snake
- Asturian: culiebra — snake
- Azerbaijani: ilan — snake
- Breton: naer — snake
- Breton: sarpant — snake
- Bulgarian: змия (zmija) — snake
- Catalan: serpent — snake
- Catalan: serp — snake
- Chinese Cantonese: 蛇 (se4) — snake
- Chinese Mandarin: 蛇 (shé) — snake
- Chuukese: serepenit — snake
- Czech: had — snake
- Danish: slange — snake
- Dutch: serpent — snake
- Dutch: slang — snake
- Egyptian: H-f:Aw-w-I14 (ḥfꜣw) — snake
- Esperanto: serpento — snake
- Finnish: käärme — snake
- French: serpent — snake
- Friulian: sarpint — snake
- Galician: serpe — snake
- Galician: bicha — snake
- Georgian: გველი (gveli) — snake
- German: Schlange — snake
- German: Wurm — snake
- Greek: ερπετό (erpetó) — snake
- Greek: φίδι (fídi) — snake
- Ancient Greek: ὄφις (óphis) — snake
- Ancient Greek: ἑρπετόν (herpetón) — snake
- Hebrew: נָחָשׁ (nakhásh) — snake
- Hebrew: שָׂרָף (saraf) — snake
- Hungarian: kígyó — snake
- Icelandic: höggormur — snake
- Icelandic: naðra — snake
- Indonesian: ular — snake
- Italian: serpente — snake
- Italian: serpe — snake
- Japanese: 蛇 (hebi) — snake
- Kashmiri: سَرُپھ (saruph) — snake
- Kashmiri: سَرُف (saruf) — snake
- Korean: 뱀 (baem) — snake
- Latin: serpēns — snake
- Latin: coluber — snake
- Latin: anguis — snake
- Latvian: čūska — snake
- Lushootseed: bə́c'əc — snake
- Macedonian: зми́ја (zmíja) — snake
- Manx: ardnieu — snake
- Manx: aarnieu — snake
- Māori: nākahi — snake
- Middle English: addere — snake
- Middle English: naddere — snake
- Nahuatl: coatl — snake
- Occitan: sèrp — snake
- Ojibwe: ginebig — snake
- Old English: nædre — snake
- Old English: nǣddre — snake
- Oromo: bofa — snake
- Persian: مار (mâr) — snake
- Persian: اربد (arbad) — snake
- Plautdietsch: Schlang — snake
- Polish: wąż — snake
- Portuguese: serpente — snake
- Quechua: amaru — snake
- Romanian: șarpe — snake
- Russian: змея́ (zmejá) — snake
- Sanskrit: सर्प (sarpa) — snake
- Sanskrit: अहि (ahi) — snake
- Serbo-Croatian: zmija — snake
- Serbo-Croatian: guja — snake
- Spanish: serpiente — snake
- Spanish: sierpe — snake
- Swahili: joka — snake
- Swedish: orm — snake
- Tatar: елан (yılan) — snake
- Tocharian B: sarpe — snake
- Turkish: yılan — snake
- Ottoman Turkish: ییلان (yılan) — snake
- Ugaritic: 𐎐𐎈𐎌 (nḥš) — snake
- Ugaritic: 𐎁𐎘𐎐 (bṯn) — snake
- Volapük: snek — snake
- Walloon: sierpint — snake
- Welsh: sarff — snake
- Yiddish: שלאַנג (shlang) — snake
- Catalan: serpentó — musical instrument
- Chinese Mandarin: 蛇號 /蛇号 (shéhào) — musical instrument
- Dutch: serpent — musical instrument
- Finnish: serpentti — musical instrument
- German: Serpent — musical instrument
- Hungarian: szerpent — musical instrument
- Italian: serpentone — musical instrument
- Italian: serpente — musical instrument
- Japanese: セルパン (serupan) — musical instrument
- Portuguese: serpentão — musical instrument
- Spanish: serpentón — musical instrument
- Volapük: särpentum — musical instrument
Real reading context