fer-de-lance

[ fer-dl-ans, -ahns ]

noun

1. a large pit viper, Bothrops atrox, of tropical America.

fer-de-lance

/ ˌfɛədəˈlɑːns /

noun

1. a large highly venomous tropical American snake, Trimeresurus (or Bothops ) atrox , with a greyish-brown mottled coloration: family Crotalidae (pit vipers)

Word History and Origins

Origin of fer-de-lance¹

1875–80; < French: literally, spearhead

Word History and Origins

Origin of fer-de-lance¹

C19: from French, literally: iron (head) of a lance

Example Sentences

The week before we arrived his son was bitten on the foot by a venomous fer-de-lance pit viper in the nearby forest.

From BBC

Unless it is a fer-de-lance, or bothrops asper, a nasty pit viper found in Central and South America.

From The Guardian

The fer-de-lance, for instance, was once considered just another deadly South American viper.

From Scientific American

And there are chiggers, ticks and mosquitoes, and venomous fer-de-lance snakes.

From New York Times

One of the deadliest snakes in Mexico, a tawny fer-de-lance, was slithering by his head, 30 centimeters away.

From Science Magazine