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reptile

reptile

noun rep-TEEL Rare

Origin: Latin reptilis (creeping)

Usage Note

Reptile covers all cold-blooded scaly vertebrates and is used in both everyday and scientific French. Informally it can be a dismissive term for a sly or slippery person. The plural reptiles is regular; the class in biology is les Reptiles.

Examples

"Le reptile se chauffe au soleil."

Natural Translation

The reptile warms itself in the sun.

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