cockatrice

views updated May 11 2018

cockatrice basilisk XIV; (her.) hybrid of cock and serpent XVI. — OF. cocatris — medL. calcātrix, cau- (fem. agent-noun f. calcāre tread, (later) track, f. calx heel) used to render Gr. ikhneúmōn, ICHNEUMON, lit, ‘tracker’. OF. cocatris came to denote the crocodile; by a further (obscure) transference cockatrice was applied in English translations of the Bible to the basilisk; assoc. with COCK 1 produced the her. sense.

cockatrice

views updated Jun 11 2018

cock·a·trice / ˈkäkətris; -ˌtrīs/ • n. another term for basilisk (sense 1). ∎  Heraldry a mythical animal depicted as a two-legged dragon (or wyvern) with a cock's head.

cockatrice

views updated May 11 2018

cockatrice a basilisk; in heraldry, a mythical animal depicted as a two-legged dragon (or wyvern) with a cock's head.

Recorded from late Middle English, the word comes via Old French from Latin calcatrix ‘tracker’ (from calcare ‘to tread or track’), translating Greek ikhneumōn ‘tracker’, see ichneumon.

Cockatrice

views updated May 21 2018

Cockatrice

Another name for the fabulous and deadly reptilian monster known as the basilisk.