sidewinder
Diagonal-moving desert snake
A sidewinder is a rattlesnake of the American Southwest that moves by throwing its body in lateral loops, leaving distinctive J-shaped tracks in sand.
The name extends to a type of heat-seeking missile.
Informally, a sidewinder is someone devious or untrustworthy—approaching indirectly like the snake: Watch out for that sidewinder.
Viper with segmented tail noisemaker
- viperFanged toxic serpent
- pitviperHeat-sensing venomous snake
- hornedHaving bony projections
- scalesPlates or weighing devices
fangs · venom · serpent · reptile · herpetology · cold-blooded · coil · slither
Move in waves
- serpentineCurving in repeated bends
- lateralOf the side
- slitherGlide smoothly, sinuously
- zigzagAngled back-and-forth path
S-curve · traction · propulsion · creep · glide · traverse · dunes · friction
Southwestern American desert
- SonoranOf a specific southwestern desert
- aridDevoid of water
- dunesWind-formed sand ridges
- sandFine rock particles
scorching · nocturnal · burrow · heat · sunbaked · xerophyte · cacti · aridity
Combat sport using fists
- hookCurved catching device
- loopingMoving in circles
- knockoutIncapacitating final blow
- haymakerWild knockout punch
swing · unexpected · angle · blindside · sucker-punch · roundhouse · jab · uppercut
Attracted to warmth sources
- infraredHeat-bearing electromagnetic waves
- air-to-airBetween flying craft
- lock-onAutomated target tracking
- dogfightClose combat between aircraft
interceptor · warhead · propulsion · flares · chaff · evasion · targeting · supersonic
rattlesnake
Viper with segmented tail noisemaker
scales · fangs · venom · serpent · reptile · herpetology · cold-blooded · coil · slither · hiss
undulate
Move in waves
- serpentineCurving in repeated bends
- lateralOf the side
- slitherGlide smoothly, sinuously
zigzag · S-curve · traction · propulsion · creep · glide · traverse · dunes · friction
Mojave
Southwestern American desert
sand · scorching · nocturnal · burrow · heat · sunbaked · xerophyte · cacti · aridity · drought
boxing
Combat sport using fists
haymaker · swing · unexpected · angle · blindside · sucker-punch · roundhouse · jab · uppercut · cross
heat-seeking
Attracted to warmth sources
- infraredHeat-bearing electromagnetic waves
- air-to-airBetween flying craft
- lock-onAutomated target tracking
dogfight · interceptor · warhead · propulsion · flares · chaff · evasion · targeting · supersonic · aerodynamics
- snakescobra, anaconda, boa, viper, python
- rattlesnakesdiamondback, timber rattlesnake, western diamondback, timber rattler, rattles
- vipersviper, pit viper, adder, copperhead, cottonmouth
- desert viperssand viper
- horned rattlesnakes
- desertsand, sand dunes, sand dune, dune, dunes