Plural of snake; a legless reptile with a long, slender body that moves by slithering.
From Old English 'snaca,' possibly related to the Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to crawl' or 'creep.' The word's origins reflect the animal's most distinctive characteristic—its crawling motion.
The word 'snake' comes from a root meaning 'to creep,' which is funny because snakes don't actually creep slowly—many are incredibly fast! But humans named them based on the slowest-looking way they move, showing how our first impressions shape language.
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