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Origin and history of snake

snake(n.)

Middle English snake, "a long, limbless reptile," from Old English snaca, from Proto-Germanic *snakon (source also of Old Norse snakr "snake," Swedish snok, German Schnake "ring snake"), from PIE root *sneg- "to crawl, creeping thing" (source also of Old Irish snaighim "to creep," Lithuanian snakė "snail," Old High German snahhan "to creep"). In Modern English, gradually replacing serpent in popular use.

Traditionally applied to the British serpent, as distinguished from the venomous adder. Applied from 17c. to various snake-like devices and appliances. Snakes! as an exclamation is from 1839.

The meaning "treacherous person" is attested by 1580s (it was used of Satan in early 15c., and serpent and adder are older in this sense) Compare Old Church Slavonic gadu "reptile," gadinu "foul, hateful." The snake's reputation was not helped by the Genesis story, but the notion is older. The phrase snake in the grass "underhand, plotting, deceitful person" translates Virgil's Latet anguis in herba [Ecl. III:93].

Snake eyes in crap-shooting, "a throw of two ones" (the lowest possible roll), is from 1919, hence the association with bad luck. This might have influenced snake-bitten, snake-bit "unlucky," attested in sports slang by 1957, which also might be from a literal sense (attested by 1807), perhaps suggesting one doomed by a venomous bite.

The board game of Snakes and Ladders is attested from 1907. Snake charmer is from 1813. Snake pit is from 1883, as a supposed primitive test of truth or courage; the figurative sense is from 1941. Snake dance is by 1772 in reference to a Hopi ceremony; by 1911 as a party dance.

snake(v.)

1650s, transitive, "twist or wind into the form of a snake," originally of hair, from snake (n.). The intransitive sense of "move like a snake" is attested from 1848; that of "wind or twist like a snake" (of roads, etc.) is from 1875. Related: Snaked; snaking.

also from 1650s

Entries linking to snake

adder(n.)

Middle English naddre, from Old English (West Saxon) næddre (Mercian nedre, Northumbrian nedra), "a snake; the Serpent in the Garden of Eden," from Proto-Germanic *naethro "a snake" (source also of Old Norse naðra, Middle Dutch nadre, Old High German natra, German Natter, Gothic nadrs), from PIE root *nētr- "snake" (source also of Latin natrix "water snake" (the sense is probably by folk-association with nare "to swim"); Old Irish nathir, Welsh neidr "snake, serpent").

The modern form represents a faulty separation 14c.-16c. of a nadder into an adder, for which see also apron, auger, nickname, orange, humble pie, aitchbone, umpire. Nedder is still a northern English dialect form.

Since Middle English the word has been restricted to use as the common name of the viper, the only venonous British reptile (though not generally fatal to humans), then by extension it was applied to venomous or similar snakes elsewhere (puff-adder, etc.). Folklore connection with deafness is via Psalm lviii.1-5. The adder is said to stop up its ears to avoid hearing the snake charmer called in to drive it away.

serpent(n.)

c. 1300, "limbless reptile," also the tempter in Genesis iii.1-5, from Old French serpent, sarpent "snake, serpent" (12c.), from Latin serpentem (nominative serpens) "snake; creeping thing," also the name of a constellation, from present participle of serpere "to creep."

This is reconstructed to be from PIE *serp- "to crawl, creep" (source also of Sanskrit sarpati "creeps," sarpah "serpent;" Greek herpein "to creep," herpeton "serpent;" Albanian garper "serpent").

Serpent and snake now mean precisely the same thing ; but the word serpent is somewhat more formal or technical than snake, so that it seldom applies to the limbless lizards, many of which are popularly mistaken for and called snakes, and snake had originally a specific meaning. [Century Dictionary, 1902]

Used figuratively of things spiral or regularly sinuous, such as a type of musical instrument with a twisting tube (1730). Serpent's tongue as figurative of venomous or stinging speech is from mistaken medieval notion that the serpent's tongue was its "sting." Serpent's tongue also was a name given to fossil shark's teeth (c. 1600). Serpent-charmer is by 1861.

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milk-snake

"A handsome and harmless serpent" [Century Dictionary], one of the larger snakes of the U.S., common in many states, by 1812, from milk (n.) + snake (n.). Also called chicken-snake (attested by 1793), house-snake, and thunder-and-lightning snake. It [the milk-snake] sometimes in

snail

common name for a small gastropod on land or in fresh water, Middle English snail, from Old English snægl, from Proto-Germanic *snagila (source also of Old Saxon snegil, Old Norse snigill, Danish snegl, Swedish snigel, Middle High German snegel, dialectal German Schnegel, Old Hig

sneak

1550s (implied in sneakish), "creep or steal about privately; move or go in a stealthy, slinking way" (intransitive); perhaps from some dialectal survival of Middle English sniken "to creep, crawl" (c. 1200), which is from Old English snican "to sneak along, creep, crawl," from P

echidna

Australian egg-laying hedgehog-like mammal, 1810, said to have been named by Cuvier, usually explained as from Greek ekhidna "snake..., viper" (also used metaphorically of a treacherous wife or friend), from ekhis "snake," from PIE *angwhi- "snake, eel" (...source also of Norwegian igle, Old High German egala, German Egel "leech," Latin anguis "serpent, snake")....," from ekhis "snake."...

racer

which races," 1640s of persons, 1660s of horses, 1793 of vehicles, by 1809 in American English in reference to a type of snake...WHEN a lad, I lived with my father in the then province of New Jersey, where the black snake, with a white throat, commonly...called the racer, as well as the rattle snake, and other serpents, are frequently met with ; and I never remember to have...heard any one dispute the power of charming belonging to several species of serpents, but more common to the black snake...

serpentine

often identified as dragonwort, from Old French serpentin name of a precious stone, a noun use of adjective meaning "of a snake..., snake-like; sly, deceptive," from Late Latin serpentius "of a serpent," from Latin serpentem (nominative serpens) "snake...write of "markings resembling those of serpent's skin" or "similarity of the texture of the rock to that of the skin of a snake..." (see ophio-), but this is uncertain: Pliny said it has marking like a snake, but he included it among the marbles....

cobra

venomous hooded snake found in India and neighboring regions, 1802, short for cobra capello (1670s), from Portuguese cobra...de capello, literally "serpent of the hood," from Latin colubra "a snake, female serpent" (source of French couleuvre "adder...Hence, a preform *kolos-ro- would mean 'distaff-like' or 'of a distaff' ..., and since a snake also winds around its own...

wind

"air in motion," Old English wind "wind," from Proto-Germanic *winda- (source also of Old Saxon, Old Frisian, Middle Dutch, Dutch wind, Old Norse vindr, Old High German wind, German Wind, Gothic winds), from PIE *wē-nt-o‑ "blowing," suffixed (participial) form of root *we- "to bl

Oregon

1765 as the name of a large river in the west of North America, probably the modern Columbia; a word of uncertain and disputed origin. It seems to be of Algonquian origin. In the U.S. it came to be applied to the northwest generally. From 1848 as the name of a U.S. territory, adm

c. 1200, "either, else, otherwise, as an alternative or substitute," from Old English conjunction oþþe "either, or," which is related to Old Frisian ieftha, Middle Dutch ofte, Old Norse eða, Old High German odar, German oder, Gothic aiþþau "or." This word was extended in early Mi

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Dictionary entries near snake

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Serpent and snake now mean precisely the same thing ; but the word serpent is somewhat more formal or technical than snake, so that it seldom applies to the limbless lizards, many of which are popularly mistaken for and called snakes, and snake had originally a specific meaning. [Century Dictionary, 1902]