Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
dictionary thesaurus view recents

python

noun
Save Word
py·​thon | \ ˈpī-ˌthän How to pronounce python (audio) , -thən \

Definition of python

: any of various large constricting snakes especially : any of the large oviparous snakes (subfamily Pythoninae of the family Boidae) of Africa, Asia, Australia, and adjacent islands that include some of the largest existing snakes

Illustration of python

Illustration of python

Examples of python in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Florida is already facing a scourge of unique environmental pests, between the Burmese pythons swallowing up the Everglades and the Kudzu vines draping many swamplands. — Sara Kiley Watson, Popular Science, "This harpoon-throwing robot is designed to hunt destructive lionfish," 17 Jan. 2020 An 8-foot python was coiled around the neck of a dead woman inside a home filled with 140 snakes in Oxford, Indiana, police said. — Vic Ryckaert, Indianapolis Star, "Python found coiled around dead woman's neck in northern Indiana home with 140 snakes," 31 Oct. 2019 An Indiana woman was found dead this week with a massive python wrapped around her neck in a house that 140 snakes call home. — Ashley Boucher, PEOPLE.com, "Indiana Woman Found Dead with Python Around Her Neck in Home with 140 Snakes," 31 Oct. 2019 Since the Python Elimination Program began, more than 2,500 pythons have been sent to the great beyond under its authorization. — Aj Willingham, CNN, "Florida is looking to hire 50 new citizen python hunters," 16 Sep. 2019 Carpet pythons generally exist on a diet that includes birds and mammals, including marsupials, and reside in certain parts of Australia and New Guinea. — Fox News, "Family finds giant python snake sunbathing on their deck," 23 July 2019 Wearing a rather feisty rock python during a visit to the Mokolodi Nature Reserve. — Omid Scobie, Harper's BAZAAR, "The Biggest Royal Moments of the Past Decade," 1 Jan. 2020 In February 2019, a woman flew from Australia to Glasgow with a python stowed away in her shoe. — Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE.com, "11 Horrifying Times Animals Made Their Way Onto Airplanes," 10 Dec. 2019 More than a dozen people interviewed for the study reported having been attacked by a python. — Vic Ryckaert, Indianapolis Star, "What we know about an Indiana woman's death from python strangulation," 1 Nov. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'python.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

See More

First Known Use of python

circa 1825, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for python

Latin, monstrous serpent killed by Apollo, from Greek Pythōn, from Pythō Delphi

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about python

Time Traveler for python

Time Traveler

The first known use of python was circa 1825

See more words from the same year

Statistics for python

Last Updated

26 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Python.” The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/python. Accessed 29 January 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for python

python

noun
How to pronounce python (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of python

: a very large snake that kills the animals it eats by wrapping itself around them

See the full definition for python in the English Language Learners Dictionary

python

noun
py·​thon | \ ˈpī-ˌthän How to pronounce python (audio) \

Kids Definition of python

: a large nonpoisonous snake of Africa, Asia, and Australia that squeezes and suffocates its prey

Keep scrolling for more

More from Merriam-Webster on python

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with python

Spanish Central: Translation of python

Nglish: Translation of python for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about python

Comments on python

What made you want to look up python? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

Show Comments  Hide Comments 

WORD OF THE DAY

allege

Listen to the pronounciation of allege

to assert without proof or before proving

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

January 2020 Words of the Day Quiz

  • image1642096650
  • Which is a synonym of bonhomie?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Syn City

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games