How do you say snake in Italian?
Serpente
Use serpente to say snake in Italian.
| Origin | From the Latin word serpens, from serpĕre, “to slither” |
| Pronunciation | /serˈpɛnte/ |
Serpente
Snake
Snake in Italian: Different forms
Like most nouns in Italian, serpente has two articles (definite or indefinite articles) and two numbers (singular or plural).
Un serpente
A snake
Dei serpenti
Some snakes
Il serpente
The snake
I serpenti
The snakes
You can also say serpe, but serpente is more common. Serpe has a negative connotation.
La serpe
The snake
Snake in Italian: Examples
Il serpente sibila.
The snake hisses.
I serpenti mi terrorizzano.
Snakes terrify me.
Ho appena toccato un serpente.
I just touched a snake.
Ho paura dei serpenti.
I’m scared of snakes.
Snake in Italian: Related words
Serpente a sonagli
Rattlesnake
Serpente dagli occhiali
Cobra
Pelle di serpente
Snakeskin
The pelle di serpente is a hide that is used to make bags.
For example, you can say:
Tom è stato morso da un serpente a sonagli.
Tom was bitten by a rattlesnake.
Ho trovato una pelle di serpente in soffitta. Come c’è finita lì?
I found a snakeskin in the attic. How did it get there?
A snake can be venomous:
Serpente velenoso
Venomous snake
Qual è il serpente più velenoso al mondo?
Which is the most venomous snake in the world?
Some common verbs that are used with snake in Italian are strisciare (to slither), attorcigliarsi (to twist around), guizzare (to dart) and sibilare (to hiss).
Of course, snakes can also mordere, to bite.
Morso di serpente
Snake’s bite
Finally, the snake that bites its tail (il serpente che si mangia la coda) in a neverending cyrcle is called uroboro (ouroboros).
Uroboro
Ouroboros
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