moccasin

views updated May 17 2018

moc·ca·sin / ˈmäkəsən/ • n. 1. a soft leather slipper or shoe, without a separate heel, having the sole turned up on all sides and sewn to the upper in a simple gathered seam, in a style originating among North American Indians. 2. a venomous American pit viper (genus Agkistrodon). Its several species include the water moccasin (see cottonmouth) and the highland moccasin (see copperhead) .