Illustration of crocodile
- crocodile 1a
crocodile
noun
croc·o·dile
ˈkrä-kə-ˌdī(-ə)l 
1
a
: any of several large, carnivorous, thick-skinned, long-bodied, aquatic reptiles (family Crocodylidae and especially genus Crocodylus) of tropical and subtropical waters that have a long, tapered, V-shaped snout
broadly
: crocodilian
b
: the skin or hide of a crocodile
2
chiefly British
: a line of people (such as schoolchildren) usually walking in pairs
Examples of crocodile in a Sentence
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Trends were loud and clear this season, with shearling and bold faux fur, often in dramatic proportions, on almost every runway, in addition to snake prints, eel skin, crocodile and pony hair.
—
Luisa Zargani, WWD, 2 Mar. 2025
But Florida has more than 175 state parks home to such diverse species as Florida black bear, the Florida panther, manatees, Florida scrub jays, and American alligators and crocodiles.
—Terry Ward, AFAR Media, 21 Feb. 2025
However, no matter how sweet, the crocodile grows bigger and more difficult to care for.
—Leo Barraclough, Variety, 16 Feb. 2025
Police have discovered a crocodile carrying human remains while searching for a 60-year-old man missing in Australia.
—Escher Walcott, People.com, 8 Feb. 2025
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Luisa Zargani, WWD, 2 Mar. 2025
But Florida has more than 175 state parks home to such diverse species as Florida black bear, the Florida panther, manatees, Florida scrub jays, and American alligators and crocodiles.
—Terry Ward, AFAR Media, 21 Feb. 2025
However, no matter how sweet, the crocodile grows bigger and more difficult to care for.
—Leo Barraclough, Variety, 16 Feb. 2025
Police have discovered a crocodile carrying human remains while searching for a 60-year-old man missing in Australia.
—Escher Walcott, People.com, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for crocodile
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Cite this Entry
“Crocodile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crocodile. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
crocodile
noun
croc·o·dile
ˈkräk-ə-ˌdīl
1
: any of several large thick-skinned long-bodied reptiles of tropical and subtropical waters compare alligator
2
: the skin or hide of a crocodile
Etymology
from Middle English cocodrille "crocodile," from early French cocodrille (same meaning), from Latin cocodrillus and earlier crocodilus "crocodile," from Greek krokodeilos "crocodile, lizard"
Word Origin
The word crocodile is taken from Greek krokodeilos, which is probably modified from a compound of krokē, "pebble, stone," and an obscure word drilos, which may have meant "worm." According to the ancient Greek writer Herodotus, some Greeks gave this name to the lizards that lived among the stone walls of their farms. When these Greeks visited Egypt, the enormous reptiles of the Nile River reminded them of the lizards and they applied the same name to them. (The more usual ancient Greek word for "lizard" was sauros, which we see in the Latin scientific names of many dinosaurs, such as Tyrannosaurus, and in the word dinosaur itself.) The Romans took Greek krokodeilos into Latin as crocodilus. However, later speakers shifted the r from the first to the third syllable, giving cocodrilus or cocodrillus. It was this form that was taken into medieval French and later into Middle English as cocodrille. Later, as Englishmen became better acquainted with the classical Latin of ancient Rome, the English word was changed to better reflect Latin crocodilus, and cocodrille was eventually forgotten.
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