Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Crocodile |
CrocodileNoun1. Large voracious aquatic reptile having a long snout with massive jaws and a body covered with bony plates; of sluggish tropical waters. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "crocodile" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Dream Interpretation | As sure as you dream of this creature, you will be deceived by your warmest friends. Enemies will assail you at every turn. To dream of stepping on a crocodile's back, you may expect to fall into trouble, from which you will have to struggle mightily to extricate yourself. Heed this warning when dreams of this nature visit you. Avoid giving your confidence even to friends. Source: Ten Thousand Dreams Interpreted .... |
Literature | Crocodile (3 syl.). A symbol of deity among the Egyptians, because it is the only aquatic animal, says Plutarch, which has its eyes covered with a thin transparent membrane, by reason of which it sees and is not seen; so God sees all, Himself not being seen. To this he subsequently adds another reason, saying, "The Egyptians worship God symbolically in the crocodile, that being the only animal without a tongue, like the Divine Logos, which standeth not in need of speech." (De Iside et Osiride, vol. ii. p. 381.) Achilles Tatius says, "The number of its teeth equals the number of days in a year." Another tradition is, that during the seven days held sacred to Apis, the crocodile will harm no one. Crocodile (King). A king who devours his people, or at least their substance. Browne, in his Travels, tells us that there is a king crocodile, as there is a queen bee. The king crocodile has no tail. Source: Brewer's Dictionary. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Crocodiles Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Crocodylia Family: Crocodylidae Genera Crocodylus
Osteolaemus
TomistomaA Crocodile can be any of the 14 species of large, water-loving reptiles in the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the subfamily Crocodylinae). The term is also used more loosely to include all members of the order Crocodylia: that is, the true crocodiles; the alligators and caymens (family Alligatoridae); and the Gharial (family Gavialidae).
The crocodiles, often just called crocs, are reptiles that live in a large portion of the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. Crocodiles tend to live in slow-moving rivers and feed on a wide variety of living and dead mammals and fish. Some species, notably the saltwater crocodile of Australia and the pacific islands, have been know to venture far out to sea.
Contrary to popular belief, only three species of crocodile (the Saltwater, the Mugger and the Nile) and one of alligator (the nearly-extinct black caimen) have been known to stalk or attack human beings for food. Large specimens of these four are extremely dangerous. Saltwater Crocodiles in northern Australia take careless tourists on a regular but rare basis, once every every few years.
Crocodiles are very fast over short distances, even out of water. They have extremely powerful jaws and razor-sharp teeth for tearing flesh, but cannot open their mouth if it is held closed, hence there are stories of people escaping from the long-snouted Nile Crocodile by holding its jaws shut. All large crocodiles also have sharp and powerful claws. Crocodiles are ambush hunters, waiting for fish or land animals to come close, then attacking in a rush. As cold blooded predators, they can survive long periods without food, and rarely need to actively go hunting. Despite their slow appearance, crocodiles are top hunters in their chosen environment, and various species have been observed attacking and killing lions, large ungulates and even sharks.
The largest species of crocodile is the Saltwater Crocodile, which lives in northern Australia and throughout South-East Asia and is the largest reptile currently living on Earth. Confusingly, in northern Australia it is common to refer to the Saltwater Crocodile as an "alligator", which it is not, and to the smaller Freshwater Crocodile as a "crocodile". This is possibly because the long-snouted Freshwater Crocodile or "freshie" does look a bit like a miniature Nile Crocodile, while in comparison the "saltie" could be said to look like the far less dangerous American Alligator. So the Alligator River in the Northern Territory is in fact named after the Saltwater Crocodile. This is why some northern Australians will claim that alligators not crocodiles are the dangerous ones.
Crocodiles in the wild are protected in Australia and many other parts of the world, but they also are farmed commercially in special crocodile farms, and their hide is tanned into leather and used to make handbags, boots, and the like, while crocodile meat is considered a delicacy by connoisseurs.
- ORDER CROCODYLIA
- Family Crocodylidae
- American Crocodile, Crocodylus acutus
- Slender-snouted Crocodile, Crocodylus cataphractus
- Orinoco Crocodile, Crocodylus intermedius
- Freshwater Crocodile, Crocodylus johnstoni
- Philippine Crocodile, Crocodylus mindorensis
- Morelet's Crocodile Crocodylus moreletii
- Nile Crocodile, Crocodylus niloticus
- New Guinea Crocodile, Crocodylus novaeguineae
- Mugger or Marsh Crocodile, Crocodylus palustris
- Saltwater Crocodile, Crocodylus porosus
- Cuban Crocodile Crocodylus rhombifer
- Siamese Crocodile, Crocodylus siamensis
- Dwarf Crocodile, Osteolaemus tetraspis
- False Gharial, Tomistoma schlegelii
- Family Alligatoridae: alligators and caymens
- Family Gavialidae: Gavial
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Crocodile."
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Animal | Alligator, crocodile; saurian; dinosaur; snake, serpent, viper, eft; asp, aspick. |
Evil doer | Canker-worm, wire-worm; locust, Colorado beetle; alacran, alligator, caymon, crocodile, mosquito, mugger, octopus; torpedo; bane. |
Falsehood | Lip homage, lip service; mouth honor; hollowness; mere show, mere outside; duplicity, double dealing, insincerity, hypocrisy, cant, humbug; jesuitism, jesuitry; pharisaism; Machiavelism, "organized hypocrisy"; crocodile tears, mealy-mouthedness, quackery; charlatanism, charlatanry; gammon; bun-kum, bumcombe, flam; bam, flimflam, cajolery, flattery; Judas kiss; perfidy; (bad faith); il volto sciolto i pensieri stretti. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Crocodile |
| English words defined with "crocodile": African crocodile, African monitor, Asian crocodile ♦ crawl, creep, Crocodile bird, Crocodylus niloticus, Crocodylus porosus ♦ false gavial ♦ Herpestes ichneumon ♦ ichneumon ♦ Morlett's crocodile ♦ Nile bird, Nile crocodile ♦ Pluvian ♦ Rhizodont, River dragon ♦ saurischian, saurischian dinosaur ♦ Tomistoma schlegeli, Trochil, Trochilos, Trochilus ♦ Varanus niloticus. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "crocodile": alligator ♦ Crocodile's Tears ♦ Gods ♦ Malambruno ♦ sacred. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "crocodile": Suchospondylous. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Crocodile" is also a word in the following language with the English translation in parentheses. French (crocodile). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Hell all three of them have reputations as low as crocodile piss (JFK; writing credit: Jim Marrs; Jim Garrison) I'm rooting for the crocodile. I hope he swallows your friends whole (Lake Placid; writing credit: David E. Kelley) Somebody get a bucket for my crocodile tears (Taina; writing credit: Fracaswell Hyman) Crocodile tongues (James and the Giant Peach; writing credit: Karey Kirkpatrick) It goes like this: if you happen to meet a crocodile, don't stick your head in its mouth (Press Gang; writing credit: Steven Moffat) | |
Lyrics | Was doing a thing called the Crocodile Rock (Crocodile Rock; performing artist: Elton John) He kicked like a mule and he bit like a crocodile. (A Boy Named Sue; performing artist: Johnny Cash) I don`t need no more crocodile tears (Don't Shed A Tear; performing artist: Paul Carrack) A wishing well of crocodile cheers (Wishing Well (A Tone Poem); performing artist: Terence Trent D'arby) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Crocodile Safari (1968) L' Arme du crocodile (1916) Bout-de-Zan et le crocodile (1913) Oh the Crocodile! (1910) Crocodile I (2002) | |
Song Titles | Crocodile Rock (performing artist: The Beach Boys) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
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Consumer Goods | |||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Jack Bond - victim of crocodile attack Huge agressive salt-water crocodiles were common in the southern Philippines At least one other Coast Surveyor was attacked by crocodile. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection. |  | Plane table mapping in the mangroves in the southern Sulu Sea In the same area that a crocodile had attacked John Bond. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection. |
 | Lieutenant Jack Bond - victim of a salt-water crocodile attack Newspaper article from the Philippine Free Press. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection. |  | Sometimes these would catch the humans instead of vice versa Huge salt-water crocodile on display in Sandakan, Borneo. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection. |
 | The crocodile : a ghost story. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Battle with a crocodile. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | The blue crocodile = Den bla krokodille. Credit: Library of Congress. | ||
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
 |  |
| "Crocodile in the palmyre's Zo" by Blanquart Matthieu Commentary: "Crocodile in the palmyre's Zoo." | "Crocs" by Brian Dimarucot Commentary: "Palawan Crocodile Farm." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. | |
| Author | Quotation |
Author Unknown | A man crossed an abalone and a crocodile hoping to get an abadile. However, he got a crocabalone. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Title | Author | Quote |
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man | Joyce, James | A crocodile seized the child |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Business | Shoes produced of python, crocodile, lizard or snake leather (or imitation), as well those made in very loud and intense colors, are enjoying a great demand currently. (references) | |
Civil Liberties | Togo | On July 19, the Director General of Police questioned Francis-Pedro Amuzun, director of Crocodile; Amuzun was threatened with arrest for an article published in Crocodile that was critical of the police. (references) |
Economic History | Kenya | Non-conventional livestock farming, for example ostrich and crocodile farming, represent an exciting new area of investment. (references) |
Trade | Jamaica | These include ammunition, crocodiles, crocodile eggs, eggs, antique furniture, gold bullion and fully or semi-manufactured gold, minerals and metals including bauxite, alumina, gypsum, antique paintings, pimento, sugar, plasma, lignum vitae and log wood, petroleum products, motor vehicles (including bodies and auto parts) as well as live animals and shells subject to the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) administered by National Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA) in Jamaica. (references) |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | ALLIGATOR, n. The crocodile of America, superior in every detail to the crocodile of the effete monarchies of the Old World. Herodotus says the Indus is, with one exception, the only river that produces crocodiles, but they appear to have gone West and grown up with the other rivers. From the notches on his back the alligator is called a sawrian. |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | If some among you fear taking a stand because you are afraid of reprisals from customers, clients, or even government, recognize that you are just feeding the crocodile hoping he'll eat you last. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Crocodile" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 98.84% of the time. "Crocodile" is used about 259 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 98.84% | 256 | 18,500 |
| Noun (proper) | 1.16% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Total | 100.00% | 259 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Country | Name |
| Hong Kong | Crocodile Garments Limited |
| (more examples...) |
Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.
Expressions using "crocodile": african crocodile ♦ asian crocodile ♦ Crocodile bird ♦ crocodile clamp ♦ crocodile cracking ♦ crocodile hand ♦ crocodile River ♦ crocodile skin ♦ crocodile tears ♦ Gangetic crocodile ♦ male crocodile ♦ Morlett's crocodile ♦ Nile crocodile ♦ shed crocodile tears ♦ walk in crocodile. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "crocodile": crocodile-headed, crocodile-infested, crocodile-inhabited, Crocodile-magill, crocodile-skin, crocodile-toothed, crocodile-wise. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day | Expression | Frequency per Day |
crocodile | 1,065 | crocodile cafe seattle | 20 |
crocodile hunter | 1,022 | allentown crocodile rock | 19 |
crocodile dundee | 142 | salt water crocodile | 18 |
crocodile rock | 134 | crocodile lyrics rock | 17 |
crocodile picture | 103 | crocodile monitor | 17 |
american crocodile | 62 | crocodile pic | 16 |
crocodile cafe | 60 | crocodile photo | 16 |
crocodile attack | 41 | crocodile skin | 15 |
crocodile clip | 40 | crocodile wallet | 14 |
cafe crocodile rock | 35 | cartoon crocodile | 14 |
crocodile hunter steve irwin | 34 | crocodile fact | 14 |
nile crocodile | 31 | the crocodile hunter game | 13 |
crocodile mile | 30 | bank crocodile river | 13 |
saltwater crocodile | 28 | crocodile farm | 13 |
crocodile gecko | 27 | crocodile hunter steve | 13 |
crocodile creek | 25 | crocodile largest | 13 |
crocodile hunter.com | 24 | crocodile never smile | 11 |
crocodile hunter live | 23 | crocodile petit | 11 |
crocodile shoes | 22 | crocodile tears | 11 |
crocodile hunter picture | 20 | crocodile belt | 11 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Translations for "crocodile"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Afrikaans | krokodil. (various references) | |
Albanian | krokodil. (various references) | |
Arabic | تمساح, طابور (column, cue, file, line, queue, row, tabor), دموع التمساح. (various references) | |
Basque | krokodilo. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | ученици в колона по двама, крокодил. (various references) | |
Chinese | 鳄鱼, 鱷魚 (alligator), 鱷 (alligator). (various references) | |
Czech | krokodýl. (various references) | |
Danish | krokodille (ramp). (various references) | |
Dutch | krokodillen (crocodiles, crocodilians, false gavial, scaly and cracked caps, true crocodiles). (various references) | |
Esperanto | krokodilo, krokodili. (various references) | |
Faeroese | krokodilla. (various references) | |
Farsi | پوست سوسمار, تمساح (Alligator), سوسمار (Lizard, Worm). (various references) | |
Finnish | krokotiili. (various references) | |
French | crocodile. (various references) | |
German | Krokodil. (various references) | |
Greek | κροκόδειλοσ, κροκόδειλος (alligator fastener, belt fastener, bristol belt lacing, clipper, crocodile shears, crocodile spanner, spectacled caiman). (various references) | |
Hebrew | תמסח, תנין (alligator). (various references) | |
Hungarian | krokodil. (various references) | |
Indonesian | buaya (alligator, cayman, villain), bajul (pick pocket). (various references) | |
Irish | crogall. (various references) | |
Italian | coccodrillo (alligator clip, left over, overset). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 鰐 (alligator), クローン病 (close game, Croatia, Crohn's disease, cross, cross counter, cross country skiing, cross kick, crossbar, cross-check, cross-country race, crossed Nichol prism, crossover, cross-stitch, gross, off-road vehicle). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | わに (alligator), クロコダイル . (various references) | |
Korean | 악어. (various references) | |
Manx | croggyl. (various references) | |
Occitan | cocodril. (various references) | |
Papiamen | krokodel. (various references) | |
Pig Latin | ocodilecray.(various references) | |
Portuguese | crocodilo. (various references) | |
Romanian | crocodil. (various references) | |
Russian | крокодил. (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | krokodil. (various references) | |
Shona | garwe. (various references) | |
Spanish | cocodrilo (alligator). (various references) | |
Swahili | mamba. (various references) | |
Swazi | ín-gwenya. (various references) | |
Swedish | krokodil. (various references) | |
Turkish | timsah (alligator, Cayman), tímsah, krokodil, ikişer ikişer yürüyen öğrenciler. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | крокодилова шкіра, крокодил. (various references) | |
Vietnamese | cá sấu Châu phi. (various references) | |
Yucatec | aayin. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | crocodilus. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Language | Date | Source | Leviticus Chapter 11, Verse 30 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | Mugalh kai camailewn kai kalabwthV kai saura kai aspalax |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Migale et cameleon et stelio ac lacerta et talpa |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | A mygal, `that is a beeste born trecherows to bigile, and moost gloterous, a camelion, `that is a beeste varyed in to diuerse colours, after diuerse lokingis, and a stellioun, `that is a werme depeyntid as with sterris, and a lacert, `that is a serpent that is clepid a liserd, and a moldwerp. |
| Renaissance English | 1526 | Tyndale | The hedgehogge, stellio, the licerte, the snayle and the moule. |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole. |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | And the ferret and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole. |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | And the ferret and the land crocodile and the lizard and the sand-lizard and the chameleon. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Leviticus Chapter 11, Verse 30 |
| Cebuano | Ug ang tuko, ug ang banghitaw, ug ang taluto, ug ang tabili, ug ang chameleon. |
| Chinese | 壁 虎 、 龍 子 、 守 宮 、 蛇 醫 、 蝘 蜓 ． |
| Croatian | zidni macaklin, kameleon, daždevnjak, zelembaæ i tinšamet. |
| Danish | Anakaen, Koadyret, Letåen, Homedyret og Tinsjemetdyret. |
| Dutch | En de zwijnegel, en de krokodil, en de hagedis, en de slak, en de mol; |
| Finnish | anaka-eläin, kooah-eläin, letaa-eläin, hoomet-eläin ja kameleontti. |
| French | le hérisson, la grenouille, la tortue, le limaçon et le caméléon. |
| German | der Igel, der Molch, die Eidechse, die Blindschleiche und der Maulwurf; |
| Haitian Creole | zandolit, soud, mabouya, gongolo, aganman. |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | dan bingkarung dan tokeh dan kubin dan unam dan mondok. |
| Italian | il toporagno, la lucertola, il geco, il ramarro, il camaleonte. |
| Maori | Me te koka, me te korokotaera, me te mokomoko, me te moeone, me te kamiriona. |
| Norwegian | og pinnsvinet og jordrotten og padden og sneglen og kameleonen*. # <* Betydningen av de hebraiske navn er usikker.> |
| Portuguese | o musaranho, o crocodilo da água, a lagartixa, o lagarto e a toupeira. |
| Rumanian | ariciul, broasca, broasca yestoasq, melcul wi cameleonul. |
| Russian | БОБЛБ, ИБНЕМЕПО, МЕФББ, ИПНЕФ Й ФЙОЫЕНЕФ, -- |
| Swedish | anakan, koadjuret, letaan, hometdjuret och kameleonten. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "crocodile": crocodiles. (additional references) | |
| |
"Crocodile" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Corkindale, crocadile, crocidile, crockdile, crockodile, crocodial, crocodil, crocodiled, crocodille, crocoldee, cryoconite. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "crocodile" (pronounced krÄ"kudī'l) |
| 3 | -d ī' l | sundial. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "c-c-d-e-i-l-o-o-r" | |
-2 letters: circled, colored, decolor, oceloid. | |
-3 letters: cicero, circle, cleric, clerid, coiled, coiler, colder, cooled, cooler, coolie, docile, doolie, locoed, oriole, oroide, recoil, roiled. | |
-4 letters: ceorl, cerci, ceric, cider, codec, coder, coled, colic, color, cooed, cooer, cored, credo, cried, croci, decor, dicer, dolce, dolci, dolor, drool, idler, looed, looie, oiled, oiler, older, oldie, oleic, oorie. | |
| Words containing the letters "c-c-d-e-i-l-o-o-r" | |
+1 letter: crocodiles. | |
+2 letters: crocidolite. | |
+3 letters: crocidolites, plerocercoid. | |
+4 letters: plerocercoids. | |
+5 letters: adrenocortical, clitoridectomy, endocrinologic, microelectrode, schoolchildren. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Crosswords 3. Usage: Modern 4. Usage: Commercial | 5. Images: Slideshow 6. Images: Photo Album 7. Images: Digital Art 8. Quotations: Familiar | 9. Quotations: Fiction 10. Quotations: Non-fiction 11. Quotations: Speeches 12. Usage Frequency | 13. Names: Company Usage 14. Expressions 15. Expressions: Internet 16. Translations: Modern | 17. Translations: Ancient 18. Bible Trace 19. Derivations 20. Rhymes | 21. Anagrams 22. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
