Wait a Minute—What Does 'Snaky' Mean, Exactly?

 Snakes get a bad rap. From being the face of humans’ Original Sin in Christianity to being Indiana Jones’ biggest fear—“Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?”—people aren’t big fans of these scaly creatures. But their imagery isn’t always bad; think Taylor Swift’s empowering and rebellious reputation album. Regardless, their likeness has influenced words in the English language, including “snaky.”

While “snaky” might bring up negative connotations like being shady or disingenuous (partly why Swift flipped it and used snakes as her mascot for rep), the word actually has more to do with snakes than you think. Here’s what snaky means and how to use it.

Does 'snaky' have to do with snakes?

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, “snaky” first and foremost means, “of, formed of, or entwined with snakes.” Its second definition also means “serpentine” or “snakelike,” and its third meaning is “suggestive of a snake.” Lastly, it can mean “abounding in snakes.”

With all of these snake-like meanings, you can still use snaky to describe things that are like a snake, like hair or movement. “Medusa had snaky hair,” means that Medusa from Greek mythology had snakes for her. But if something coils, it can also be snaky. The first known use of “snaky” was in 1567 to describe Medusa’s hair.