viperine adjective & noun. ['vʌɪpǝrʌɪn, -ɪn] M16.
[Latin viperinus, from vipera VIPER: see -INE¹. In senses 3b, B. from mod. Latin Viperinae (see below).]
A. adjective.
1. = VIPEROUS 2. M16.

2. Of, pertaining to, or obtained from a viper. E17.

3. Zoology.
a. Of a snake: resembling a viper. E19.
viperine snake a harmless colubrid snake, Natrix maura, that resembles a viper and is found in SW Europe.
b. Of, pertaining to, or designating the subfamily Viperinae, which comprises the true vipers, or the family Viperidae which contains it. Cf. CROTALINE adjective. L19.
b. noun. Zoology. A snake of this subfamily. Cf. CROTALINE noun. L19.

[TahlilGaran] English Dictionary ▲