boa constrictor
5
4.7
- noun
- /ˈboʊə kənˈstrɪktər/
- US
:
boa constrictor
- She was fascinated by the way the boa constrictor moved silently through the underbrush.
- boa constrictors and pythons
- a boa constrictor snake
- small boa constrictors
OK, and now I give you a boa constrictor.
- OK, and now I give you a boa constrictor.
- So you made quick mention of the constricting part of a boa constrictor.
Examples
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Every ten to fifteen feet, almost as if they had been purposely spaced that way, were loafing boa constrictors coiled around or hanging from tree limbs.
Fiction book (1993) -
At the zoo, we saw a massive boa constrictor lounging in its enclosure.
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I know a boa constrictor when I see one.
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This is Ben, our boa constrictor.
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Okay, once you get across this stream, we gotta look out for boa constrictors.
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You know, they say the boa constrictor right there is capable of eating up to 500 pounds per sitting.
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The handler has a giant boa constrictor wrapped around his body.
Blog text (31) -
Zoo-goers are more interested in chimps and boa constrictors.
Fiction book (1990) -
Members of the troop cooperated to rescue a juvenile from a boa constrictor.
Academic text (2014) -
That goat hasn't even begun to be digested by the boa constrictor.
Blog text (14)
Synonyms
19
5.4
A large non-venomous tropical snake that kills prey by wrapping and squeezing it
11
6.5
A large snake without venom that kills animals by wrapping and squeezing them
A very large snake from tropical America often called the boa constrictor
How Big
16
5.6
- Specialized
3
3.9
- US
5
4.7
- US
1
6.0
- US
4
3.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound meaning is directly derivable from the parts: 'boa' (a large constrictor) + 'constrictor' (a snake that kills by constriction) simply names that type of snake. This noun–noun composition is literal and cross-linguistically regular, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand the phrase.
Etymology
Boa constrictor gets its name from how the snake kills: the word constrictor means one that 'squeezes'. Imagine a large snake wrapping its body around an animal and slowly 'squeezing' it until it cannot breathe, so the name describes the snake's way of killing.