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Added 9 October 2026

snail

/sneɪl/ noun

In Latin: cochlea Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about snail at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Any of very many animals (either hermaphroditic or nonhermaphroditic), of the class Gastropoda, having a coiled shell.
A slow person; a sluggard.
A spiral cam, or a flat piece of metal of spirally curved outline, used for giving motion to, or changing the position of, another part, as the hammer tail of a striking clock.

verb

To move or travel very slowly.
The cars were snailing along the motorway during the rush hour.

Origin

From Middle English snayl, snail, from the Old English sneġel, from Proto-Germanic *snagilaz. Cognate with Low German Snagel, Snâel, Snâl (“snail”), German Schnegel (“slug”). Compare also Old Norse snigill, from Proto-Germanic *snigilaz.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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