(chiefly poetic/literary)a large snake (主诗/文)巨蛇 ■(the Serpent)a biblical name for Satan (see Gen. 3, Rev. 20) (圣经)撒旦 ■a dragon or other mythical snake-like reptile 龙,似蛇的爬行动物 ■(figurative)a sly or treacherous person, especially one who exploits a position of trust in order to betray it (喻)奸诈狡猾的人
(historical)a bass wind instrument made of leather-covered wood in three U-shaped turns, with a cup-shaped mouthpiece and few keys. It was played in military and church bands from the 17th to 19th centuries (史)蛇形管,蛇形号
语源
Middle English: via Old French from Latin serpent- 'creeping', from the verb serpere