Naddre

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic term for a venomous snake, especially the viper known as the adder in English
2. An old English word meaning a serpent, particularly the poisonous European viper that was once called an adder
3. A obsolete name for a snake, used in older English writing to refer to a reptile of the viper family

Etymology: "Adder" lost a letter by mistake. In Old English the snake was "nædre," and in later Middle English speakers heard phrases like "a naddre" as "an addre." They split the words in the wrong place, and the initial n stayed with the article, leaving "adder" behind. English has done this with other words too, including "apron," from "napron," and "newt," from "an ewt." The older form belongs to a long Germanic family. The Proto-Germanic root is reconstructed as "*nadrǭ," and its relatives include German "Natter" and Dutch "adder," both still meaning the snake. Some scholars have linked the root to Latin "natrix," a water snake, but that connection is uncertain.

Synonyms: adder, viper