Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

sidewinder

/ˈsaɪd.waɪn.dɚ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.47 in modern English

Syllables
sidewinder
IPA
/ˈsaɪd.waɪn.dɚ/
15
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A North American rattlesnake, Crotalus cerastes, that inhabits lowland deserts.

noun

A person who is untrustworthy and dangerous.

Slang

noun

A heavy swinging blow from the side which disables an adversary.

Dated; Slang

noun

A pitcher who throws sidearm.

Colloquial

noun

A type of middle-distance deep-sea trawler widely used during the 1960s and 1970s.

noun

A rollercoaster element where riders enter a half-loop followed by a half-corkscrew, and exit perpendicular to the direction of entry.

verb

Synonym of sidewind.

name

Formally the AIM-9 Sidewinder, first used by the US in 1956, one of the oldest, cheapest, and most successful short-range air-to-air missiles, still in use by many countries in the 2020s.

Etymology

From side + winder (“one who winds or wends, traveller”), from the sideways, looping manner in which they move.

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈsaɪd.waɪn.dɚ/

Usage

Inflected Forms

sidewinders (plural) sidewinders (present, singular) sidewindering (participle, present) sidewindered (participle, past) sidewindered (past)

Phrases

Colorado Desert sidewinder

Synonyms

sidewind horned rattlesnake crotalus cerastes

Questions

How do you pronounce sidewinder?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈsaɪd.waɪn.dɚ/.
What does sidewinder mean?
A North American rattlesnake, Crotalus cerastes, that inhabits lowland deserts.
Where does sidewinder come from?
From side + winder (“one who winds or wends, traveller”), from the sideways, looping manner in which they move.

How to pronounce sidewinder

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “sidewinder”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈsaɪd.waɪn.dɚ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “sidewinder”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “sidewinder” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.