Venom

How to spell venom

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce venom

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does venom mean?

1. nounA poisonous fluid that some animals inject when they bite or sting.
2. nounExtreme bitterness or spite directed at someone.

Venom in a sentence

• The snake's venom can stop a victim's heart within minutes.

• She spoke about her former boss with surprising venom.

• Researchers milk the spider to collect its venom for medical research.

• The email was full of venom aimed at the whole department.

Where does venom come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin venenum, which meant 'poison' but also, in its earliest sense, a 'love potion' or 'magical charm'. That root is thought to be connected to Venus, the goddess of love, the idea being a potion that stirs desire before the meaning darkened into the dangerous draught we know today. English took the word through Old French venim or venin during the 1200s, and the spelling drifted toward the modern 'venom' over the following centuries. The same Latin venenum lies behind the words 'venomous' and the chemical-sounding 'venenation'. The spelling trap is the unstressed second syllable, which sounds like a vague schwa and tempts writers toward 'venum' or 'venim' rather than the correct 'venom'.

How the word is built

• venom (from Latin venenum: poison); treated as a single root, no productive prefix or suffix