SERPENTINE


Meaning of SERPENTINE in English

adj., n., & v.

--adj.

1. of or like a serpent.

2 coiling, tortuous, sinuous, meandering, writhing (the serpentine windings of the stream).

3 cunning, subtle, treacherous.

--n.

1. a soft rock mainly of hydrated magnesium silicate, usu. dark green and sometimes mottled or spotted like a serpent's skin, taking a high polish and used as a decorative material.

2 Skating a figure of three circles in a line.

--v.intr. move sinuously, meander.

Phrases and idioms:

serpentine verse a metrical line beginning and ending with the same word.

Etymology: ME f. OF serpentin f. LL serpentinus (as SERPENT)

Oxford English vocab.      Оксфордский английский словарь.