Adder Meaning
/ˈædɚ/Definition, CEFR level C2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounAny snake.
nounA name loosely applied to various snakes more or less resembling a viper., A small venomous serpent of the genus Vipera
Sentence Examples
The common adder is ovoviviparous.
"It is a swamp adder!" cried Holmes; "the deadliest snake in India."
We ran into a black adder in England.
CEFR Practice Quiz
In the UK, the only venomous snake is the common ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The child saw a small ____ sliding through the tall green grass.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English nadder, addere, rebracketing of “a naddere” as “an addere”, from Old English nǣdre (“snake”), from Proto-West Germanic *nadrā, from Proto-Germanic *nadrǭ, from pre-Germanic *néh₁treh₂, variant of Proto-Indo-European *n̥h₁trih₂, from *(s)neh₁- (“to spin, twist”). See also West Frisian njirre, Dutch adder, German Natter, Otter; also Welsh neidr, Latin natrīx (“watersnake”), Dutch naaien.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"CALIBAN: His spirits hear me, / And yet I needs must curse. But they'll nor pinch / Fright me with urchin-shows, pitch me i'th' mire, / Nor lead me like a firebrand in the dark / Out of my way, unless he bid 'em; but / For every trifle are they set upon me, / Sometimes like apes that mow and chatter at me, / And after bite me; then like hedgehogs, which / Lie tumbling in my barefoot way, and mount / Their pricks at my footfall; sometimes am I / All wound with adders, who with their cloven tongues / Do hiss me into madness—"
— 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii]:
"Entirely filled with the image of another, her heart, indeed, had the deaf ear of the adder, which heedeth not the voice of the charmer, charm he never so wisely."
— 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XXX, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 245:
"These include the county's [Cumbria's] only venomous snake - the adder - which relies on exposed elements to successfully breed its young."
— 2021 August 25, Nick Brodrick, “Flourishing Flora and Fauna”, in RAIL, number 938, page 51:
"Many ADDers become targets for bullies and are routinely harassed at school."
— 1996, David Sosin, Attention Deficit Disorder, page 54:
Explore More C2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
In the UK, the only venomous snake is the common ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The child saw a small ____ sliding through the tall green grass.