rattlesnake

See also: rattle snake

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From rattle +‎ snake.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈɹæt.əlˌsneɪk/
  • Audio (Southern England):(file)
  • Rhymes: -eɪk

Noun

rattlesnake (plural rattlesnakes)

  1. Any of various venomous American snakes, of genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, having a rattle at the end of its tail.
    Synonym: (US, colloquial) rattler
    • 1895, J[ohn] W[esley] Powell, chapter I, in Canyons of the Colorado, Meadville, PA: Flood & Vincent; republished as The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons, New York: Dover, 1961, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 22:
      Hooded rattlesnakes, horned toads, and lizards crawl in the dust and among the rocks.
    • 2019 July, Jeffrey Rindskopf, “The Costs of Instatravel”, in DOPE Magazine, page 90:
      The country ran shuttles and posted signs encouraging visitors to enjoy the display responsibly, but those precautions didn't prevent rattlesnake bites, twisted ankles, heat exhaustion, Instacelebs and other selfie-takers lying in or otherwise trampling the delicate blooms they'd come to see.
    • (Can we date this quote?), “Snake Safety”, in USDA‎[1], page 1:
      Generally not aggressive, rattlesnakes strike when threatened or deliberately provoked, but given room they will retreat. Most snake bites occur when a rattlesnake is handled or accidentally touched by someone walking or climbing. The majority of snakebites occur on the hands, feet and ankles.

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