amphisbaena

am·phis·bae·na

A a

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [am-fuh s-bee-nuh]
- /ˌæm fəsˈbi nə/
- /ˈamfɪsbˌiːnə/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [am-fuh s-bee-nuh]
- /ˌæm fəsˈbi nə/

Definitions of amphisbaena word

noun amphisbaena any worm lizard of the genus Amphisbaena 3
noun amphisbaena a poisonous serpent having a head at each end and able to move forwards or backwards 3
noun amphisbaena a serpent with a head at each end of its body 3
noun plural amphisbaena any of numerous worm lizards of the genus Amphisbaena. 1
noun plural amphisbaena Classical Mythology. a serpent having a head at each end of its body and the ability to move forward or backward. 1
noun amphisbaena A legendary serpent with a head at each end. 1

See all 8 definitions of amphisbaena

Information block about the term

Origin of amphisbaena

First appearance:

before 1350

One of the 20% oldest English words

1350-1400; Middle English amphibena < New Latin, Latin < Greek amphísbaina a serpent that moves forward or backward, equivalent to amphís both ways + baín(ein) to go + -a noun suffix

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Amphisbaena

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Amphisbaena

amphisbaena popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 39% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.

Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

amphisbaena usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer