Meaning & use
venom
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Meanings
noununcountablebiology
The poisonous liquid that some animals, such as snakes, spiders and scorpions, inject into others with a bite or sting.
Grammar: Uncountable: the snake's venom, not a venom, unless discussing kinds of venom.
Patterns
- venom from something
- the venom of something
The spider's venom can paralyze a small insect within seconds.
Doctors injected the patient with a drug to counter the snake's venom.
Scientists study cone snail venom to develop new painkillers.
noununcountablefigurative
Bitter, hateful feeling or language aimed at a person.
Grammar: Used figuratively; often follows with or in: she spoke with venom.
Patterns
- with venom
- venom in someone's voice
She spat out the words with real venom.
The online comments were filled with venom toward the referee.
There was no venom in his reply, only a tired sigh.
Common combinations
- snake venom
- Snake venom is milked to produce antivenom.
- deadly venom
- The scorpion's deadly venom is rare in people.
- spit venom
- The columnist spat venom at his rivals.
- inject venom
- Bees inject venom through the stinger.
- with venom in one's voice
- She answered with venom in her voice.
Synonyms and how they differ
- poison
- Poison is harmful when swallowed, touched or breathed in, while venom must be injected by a bite or sting.
- toxin
- Toxin is a scientific word for any poisonous substance made by a living thing, so venom is one kind of toxin.
- spite
- Spite, for the figurative sense, is a feeling of wanting to hurt someone, whereas venom stresses fierce, poisonous expression of it.
- bitterness
- Bitterness is a quieter, lasting resentment, while venom is sharper and more aggressive.
Opposites
Word family
- venomous adjective
- able to inject venom, or full of hatred
- venomously adverb
- in a hateful, bitter way
- antivenom noun
- medicine that counters venom
- envenomation noun
- the process of being injected with venom
Commonly confused: venom or poison?
venom vs poison
Poison harms when swallowed, breathed in or touched, while venom is injected by an animal. A venomous snake bites, and a poisonous plant is eaten.
Practice
Rattlesnakes kill their prey by injecting ___ through their fangs.
Choose one answer.
Venom is the substance injected by a bite. Poison is harmful by contact or swallowing, so it is the tempting but less exact word here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “venom”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.