death adder
- noun
- /dɛθ ˈædər/
- Australian
:
serpiente de muerte
- The rapid strike of a death adder can catch even experienced wildlife observers by surprise.
Examples
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The death adder is known for its speed and potent venom, making it one of the most dangerous snakes in Australia.
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While hiking in the bush, I spotted a death adder coiled among the rocks, ready to strike its prey.
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Got one little beauty called the death adder.
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Asha recognized the arrowhead and spiny tail of death adders, serpents that had long ago cut a niche for themselves in the island's deranged ecology.
Fiction book (1995)
Synonyms
A very poisonous Australian snake that hides to catch small animals and uses its tail like bait
A group of very venomous snakes from Australia called death adders
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines 'death' (end of life) with 'adder' (a venomous snake), so a B1 learner who knows both words can readily infer it denotes an adder associated with causing death — i.e., a very venomous snake. This noun+modifier pattern is cross-linguistically common and thus predictable, even if specific details (e.g., Australian range) are not derivable from the constituents.
Etymology
Death adder comes from the words death and adder because people used death for its deadly bite and adder because it looked like the small snakes called adders. That's why the name now refers to a dangerous Australian snake.
