1
a
archaic
: a noxious creature that creeps, hisses, or stings
b
: snake
2
3
: a treacherous person
Examples of serpent in a Sentence
an Aztec carving of a feathered serpent representing the god Quetzalcoatl
beware the temptations of the serpent
Recent Examples on the Web
Though the leopard-like pattern is extremely rare, snake aficionados do occasionally find wild serpents with mutations.
—
Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 May 2025
Walking into the library, your first point of contact is with the intricate wooden carving of Coatlicue, the Aztec earth goddess and mother of the gods, who has twin serpents for a head and is a symbol of creation and destruction.
—Julissa James, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2025
The outage began around 11 p.m., when the serpent came in contact with equipment in a Durham, North Carolina, substation.
—Kimberlee Speakman, People.com, 8 May 2025
Snakes abound in the megaliths unearthed at the archaeological site of Gobekli Tepe in present-day Turkey, where Neolithic peoples attached special significance to serpents roughly 10,000 years ago.
—Stephen S. Hall, Time, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for serpent
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Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 May 2025
Walking into the library, your first point of contact is with the intricate wooden carving of Coatlicue, the Aztec earth goddess and mother of the gods, who has twin serpents for a head and is a symbol of creation and destruction.
—Julissa James, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2025
The outage began around 11 p.m., when the serpent came in contact with equipment in a Durham, North Carolina, substation.
—Kimberlee Speakman, People.com, 8 May 2025
Snakes abound in the megaliths unearthed at the archaeological site of Gobekli Tepe in present-day Turkey, where Neolithic peoples attached special significance to serpents roughly 10,000 years ago.
—Stephen S. Hall, Time, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for serpent
Cite this Entry
“Serpent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/serpent. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
serpent
noun
ser·pent
ˈsər-pənt 
: a usually large snake
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