fer-de-lance

[fer-dl-ans, -ahns]

fer-de-lance

[fer-dl-ans, -ahns]
noun
a large pit viper, Bothrops atrox, of tropical America.

Origin:
1875–80; < French: literally, spearhead
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Fer-de-lance is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
a fool or simpleton; ninny.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
Collins
World English Dictionary
fer-de-lance (ˌfɛədəˈlɑːns)
 
n
a large highly venomous tropical American snake, Trimeresurus (or Bothops) atrox, with a greyish-brown mottled coloration: family Crotalidae (pit vipers)
 
[C19: from French, literally: iron (head) of a lance]

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