plumber's snake

noun

1. snake ( def 3a ).

Word History and Origins

Origin of plumber's snake¹

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

Remove the drain screen and give it a good cleaning and, if necessary, use a plunger or plumber’s snake to clear the drain.

From Seattle Times

Remove the drain screen and give it a good cleaning and, if necessary, use a plunger or plumber’s snake to clear the drain.

From Washington Post

So I tried them all again, in order: boiling water, a run-through with a plumber’s snake, a dose of some kind of proprietary enzyme; plain old sulphuric acid.

From The Guardian

Cape May has three full-time pump stations to handle storm overflow; a Ramjet that is akin to a plumber’s snake but on a much larger level; and a street sweeper that completes one lap of the quaint and lush town’s nine miles of roadways each week.

From Newsweek

Clogged arteries are either reopened with the equivalent of a plumber's snake or bypassed by vessels borrowed from other parts of the body.

From Time Magazine Archive