sidewinder
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side·wind·er
(sīd′wīn′dər)n.
1. A small rattlesnake (Crotalus cerastes) of the southwest United States and Mexico that moves by a distinctive lateral looping motion of its body and has a hornlike scaly projection above each eye.
2. A powerful swinging punch delivered from the side.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
sidewinder
(ˈsaɪdˌwaɪndə)n
1. (Animals) a North American rattlesnake, Crotalus cerastes, that moves forwards by a sideways looping motion
2. (Boxing) boxing US a heavy swinging blow from the side
3. (Military) a US air-to-air missile using infrared homing aids in seeking its target
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
side•wind•er
(ˈsaɪdˌwaɪn dər)n.
1. a punch delivered with a wide swing from the side.
2. a rattlesnake, Crotalus cerastes, of the southwestern U.S. and N Mexico, that moves in sand by raising loops on the body and displacing them sideways.
[1830–40]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
Sidewinder
1. A dirty, crooked scoundrel.
2. A variety of small rattlesnake sometimes known as a horned rattlesnake. Above each eye is a “horn” which is really an extension of the upper eye shield. The name sidewinder comes from its mode of locomotion, which is unique, not only among rattlesnakes, but among all other North American snakes. Sidewinders can travel in the normal manner of all snakes, but when in a hurry, form their bodies into a series of loops, and throw them forward. This approach facilitates its movement over sand and also causes its motion to be oblique to the direction in which its head points and leads to the name sidewinder. As might be imagined, the sidewinder is found only in the dry desert-like Western States. Its method of moving in sand is not, however, unique to the United States. Similar moving snakes are found in Africa and in some of the Arab nations.
1001 Words and Phrases You Never Knew You Didn’t Know by W.R. Runyan Copyright © 2011 by W.R. Runyan
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| Noun | 1. |  sidewinder - small pale-colored desert rattlesnake of southwestern United States; body moves in an s-shaped curverattler, rattlesnake - pit viper with horny segments at the end of the tail that rattle when shaken Crotalus, genus Crotalus - large rattlesnakes; seldom bite unless startled or pursuing prey |
| 2. | sidewinder - air-to-air missile with infrared homing device missile - a rocket carrying a warhead of conventional or nuclear explosives; may be ballistic or directed by remote control |
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Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995