| any cobra or cobralike snake, esp. the ringhals, that sprays venom at the eyes of approaching animals. |
ring·hals  (rĭng'hāls')  n. pl. ring·hals·es An African snake (Hemachatus haemachatus) that spits venom at the eyes of an attacker, sometimes causing blindness. Also called spitting cobra. [Obsolete Afrikaans : ring, ring (from Middle Dutch rinc; see sker-2 in Indo-European roots) + hals, neck (from Middle Dutch; see kwel-1 in Indo-European roots).] |
| spit·ting cobra (spĭt'ĭng) n. See ringhals. |