a rattlesnake, Crotalus cerastes, of southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico, that has a hornlike projection over each eye and that moves in loose sand by raising loops on the body and displacing them sideways.
3.
any Old World snake that moves by sidewinding, as various species of Bitis and Cerastes.
4.
(initial capital letter) an air-to-air, supersonic weapon that intercepts and destroys enemy aircraft using an infrared homing-guidance system.
n. a sneaky and despicable man. (Western jargon. From the name of the sidewinder rattlesnake.) : You dirty, lowdown sidewinder! That's too much!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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