alligator

Other forms: alligators; alligatoring

An alligator is a very big reptile — a scaly, four-footed animal with a long tail. You might see an alligator if you travel to Florida or Louisiana.

Alligators are only found in the warmest, swampiest places in the United States and China — and occasionally in the zoo. They can grow as long as fourteen feet and can weigh more than 900 pounds, and they eat turtles, birds, fish, and sometimes deer. Alligator comes from the Spanish el lagarto, or "lizard." In the 1930s, if someone called you an alligator, they might have been referring to your love for swing music.