noun
- a legendary creature with the head and wings of a rooster and the tail of a serpent or dragon
- a treacherous or evil person
Usage: mythology; heraldry
Usage: archaic; literary
Examples
- The medieval tapestry depicted a fierce cockatrice guarding a treasure.
- In heraldry, the cockatrice symbolizes terror to enemies.
- The fantasy novel featured a cockatrice as the primary antagonist.
- Ancient bestiaries described the cockatrice as hatched from a serpent’s egg by a rooster.
- The coat of arms displayed a golden cockatrice on a red field.
- Shakespeare used ‘cockatrice’ to describe a particularly treacherous character.