Wyvere

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A mythical winged creature resembling a dragon but having only two legs, often shown on heraldic shields and coats of arms
2. An archaic spelling for a two-legged dragon with wings and a barbed tail, common in medieval heraldry and folklore
3. A legendary flying serpent-like beast with two legs and a barbed tail, frequently depicted in coats of arms and old stories

Etymology: Hidden inside this dragon is a snake. The word descends from Latin "vipera", meaning viper, which passed into Old French as "wivre" and reached English through Anglo-Norman "wyver". Medieval scribes spelled it many ways, and "wyvere" is one of the variants. The link to the viper explains the creature's design. Medieval writers pictured a winged serpent, so the name stayed attached to a dragon with a serpent's barbed tail rather than the fire-breathing, four-legged dragon of other traditions. In heraldry, the wyvern became a common charge on coats of arms.