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serpentine

Etymology and origin of the English word serpentine

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈsɜː.pənˌtaɪn/ (UK); /ˈsɝ.pənˌtaɪn/, /ˈsɝ.pənˌtin/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English serpentine, borrowed from Old French serpentin,[2][3][4] from Late Latin serpentīnus (“of a serpent”),[2][3][5][4][6] from Latin serpēns (“snake”).[2][3][5][4][6] The name of the mineral is from the Medieval Latin nouns serpentīnum and serpentīna, uses of the same adjective.[3][4][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

As an adjective, “having the evil qualities of a serpent, devilishly cunning” (1387–88);[7][5] as a noun, a plant thought to cure snakebite (before 1400).[7][5]

Semantic evolution

The sense “of or resembling a serpent” is recorded from about 1420.[7][5] The meaning “winding, sinuous” dates from 1615.[7][3][5] As a noun the word named a cannon (c. 1450)[7][5] and a greenish rock or mineral, perhaps named for its colour or for markings like a snake's skin (1426).[7][5] The winding lake in Hyde Park, London, called the Serpentine, was made in 1730.[5]

Timeline

  • 1387–88 – having the evil qualities of a serpent; satanic.[7]
  • before 1400 – noun, a plant used against snakebite.[7][5]
  • c. 1408 – noun, the greenish mineral (Barnhart).[3]
  • c. 1420 – of or resembling a serpent.[7]
  • c. 1450 – a kind of cannon.[7][5]
  • 1615 – winding, sinuous.[7][3][5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Of or resembling a serpent, in form or movement.
  2. Winding or turning one way and another; sinuous.
  3. Subtly sly, cunning or tempting.

Noun

  1. A greenish, often mottled mineral or rock consisting mainly of hydrous magnesium silicate.
  2. Something that winds sinuously.
  3. (historical) A kind of cannon used from the 15th to the 17th century.

Verb

  1. To follow a winding course.

Word family

  • serpentinely
  • serpent
  • herpes
  • sinuous

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Serpentine.” Etymologically, 11 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/serpentine. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·