rep·tile
ˈrep-ˌtī(-ə)l 
-tᵊl
1
: an animal that crawls or moves on its belly (such as a snake) or on small short legs (such as a lizard)
2
: any of a class (Reptilia) of cold-blooded, air-breathing, usually egg-laying vertebrates that include the alligators and crocodiles, lizards, snakes, turtles, and extinct related forms (such as dinosaurs and pterosaurs) and that have a body typically covered with scales or bony plates and a bony skeleton with a single occipital condyle, a distinct quadrate bone usually immovably articulated with the skull, and ribs attached to the sternum
3
: a groveling or despised person
Synonyms
Noun
- bastard
- beast
- bleeder [British]
- blighter [chiefly British]
- boor
- bounder
- bugger
- buzzard
- cad
- chuff
- churl
- clown
- creep
- cretin
- crud [slang]
- crumb [slang]
- cur
- dirtbag [slang]
- dog
- fink
- heel
- hound
- jerk
- joker
- louse
- lout
- pill
- rat
- rat fink
- rotter
- schmuck [slang]
- scum
- scumbag [slang]
- scuzzball [slang]
- skunk
- sleaze
- sleazebag [slang]
- sleazeball [slang]
- slime
- slimeball [slang]
- slob
- snake
- so-and-so
- sod [chiefly British]
- stinkard
- stinker
- swine
- toad
- varmint
- vermin
Examples of reptile in a Sentence
Noun
He called the governor's top aide a reptile.
the actor plays a total reptile who's somehow still a hit with the ladies
Recent Examples on the Web
Scott Travers, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
When the battery ran out, the spinner would power the tracker in the bobber by the reptile’s movements through the water and, erratically, by the wind when the beast hauled itself onto land.
—Jeff Vandermeer, WIRED, 22 Oct. 2024
Colleen Barry, Fortune, 25 Sep. 2022
Currently, it can be seen in the aquatic and reptile center.
—Amy Schwabe, Journal Sentinel, 27 Jan. 2023
See all Example Sentences for reptile 
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Noun
The cane toads also compete fiercely for food, devouring insects, frogs and small reptiles at a sharp pace.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
When the battery ran out, the spinner would power the tracker in the bobber by the reptile’s movements through the water and, erratically, by the wind when the beast hauled itself onto land.
—Jeff Vandermeer, WIRED, 22 Oct. 2024
Adjective
For him, a flashy reptile leather jacket was worn with a mesh top and jeans, but there was also a dark blue double-breasted suit for more formal business occasions.
—Colleen Barry, Fortune, 25 Sep. 2022
Currently, it can be seen in the aquatic and reptile center.
—Amy Schwabe, Journal Sentinel, 27 Jan. 2023
See all Example Sentences for reptile
Dictionary Entries Near reptile
Cite this Entry
“Reptile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reptile. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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