rattlesnake
part of speech
noun (a rattlesnake, rattlesnakes; informal: rattler)
meaning for a pupil
A poisonous (venomous) snake of North and South America that has a rattle at the end of its tail made of hard rings, which it shakes to make a buzzing warning noise. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science, the rattle is a warning signal and an adaptation: it tells bigger animals to stay away. Rattlesnakes are pit vipers that sense heat. In outdoor safety lessons in the USA, Canada and Mexico: stay on paths, watch where you put hands and feet, don't reach under rocks or logs; if you hear a rattle, freeze, find the snake, and back away slowly; if bitten, keep still and calm and get emergency help — don't cut or suck the wound. Phrases: rattlesnake bite, a rattler, shake its rattle.
examples
- The rattlesnake shook its tail to warn us. tree →
- If you hear a rattlesnake, back away slowly. tree →
- Rattlesnakes live in deserts and grasslands in America. tree →
- Watch where you step on desert trails — rattlesnakes hide under rocks. tree →
- A rattlesnake bite needs a doctor straight away. tree →
- The rattle is made of hard rings, like your fingernails. tree →
- Baby rattlesnakes are venomous too. tree →
note
One word: rattlesnake. There are no wild rattlesnakes in the UK, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand (Australia has other venomous snakes). Snakes are venomous (poison injected by a bite), which is the correct word, though people often say «poisonous».
In the corpora
- Pit vipers such as rattlesnakes have heat-sensing pits on their faces that find warm-blooded prey in total darkness.
- Cobras, mambas, vipers and rattlesnakes are the famous ones.
- Rattlesnakes live in Arizona, Texas and many other parts of the USA, and they do not always rattle before they strike.
- Some snakes, such as rattlesnakes, can sense the heat given off by warm animals.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «rattlesnake» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.