cottonmouth moccasin
- noun
- /ˈkɑtənˌmaʊθ ˈmɒkəsɪn/
- Specialized
:
mocasin de boca de algodón
- In the southern swamps, the cottonmouth moccasin is often seen swimming near the water's edge.
Examples
-
While hiking in the wetlands, we spotted a cottonmouth moccasin basking on a log.
-
But there are neither caves nor waterfalls anywhere around, only the Delta, and cottonmouth moccasins sticking their heads up out of the river, pale brown as too-milky coffee, and slithering s-shaped back down again.
Fiction book (2000) -
At the nature reserve, a cottonmouth moccasin displayed its distinctive white mouth when threatened.
Synonyms
4
9.9
A dangerous water snake with a bright white mouth that lives in southern US swamps
3
9.1
A large venomous North American snake that lives near fresh water like swamps and streams
A venomous water snake that lives in southern United States swamps, called the cottonmouth
Surface Forms
Morphology
cottonmouth + moccasin
The phrase is compositionally built from identifiable lexical items—'cottonmouth' (a venomous snake) and 'moccasin'—so a learner who knows those constituents can infer it names a particular kind of snake. However, it is a specific species name (and 'moccasin' is also commonly known as a type of shoe), so the exact zoological sense and connotations may not be fully predictable to a B1 learner without prior exposure.
Etymology
The noun cottonmouth moccasin comes from the snake's habit of opening its mouth to show a white, cotton-like lining, which is the cottonmouth part, and moccasin is a local name for this water snake. When it shows that white mouth it is warning, so the name is used for a 'dangerous water snake'.