fang

IPA/fæŋ/
KK[fˈæŋ]IPA/fæŋ/

fang — noun

  • fangsingular
  • fangsplural

1. a long, pointed tooth that some animals have, used for gripping and tearing food

1.nounB1
Definition

a long, pointed tooth that some animals have, used for gripping and tearing food or prey

Example

Daichi's dog growled and bared its fangs at the stranger.

collocation: bare its fangs

The wolf's fangs sank deep into the deer's hind leg.

collocation: sink fangs into [prey]

Common collocations
  • bare its fangs
  • sink its fangs into
  • sharp fangs
  • long fangs
  • show its fangs
Synonyms
  • canine

    the formal anatomical term for the same tooth type in mammals; 'fang' is the everyday word used in stories and descriptions

Usage Note

Almost always plural ('fangs') when describing an animal's teeth. The singular 'fang' is used when referring to a single tooth, often in contexts where one fang stands out or is examined individually.

Common Mistakes

The elephant's fangs are made of ivory.
The elephant's tusks are made of ivory.
Tusks are the long protruding teeth of elephants and walruses; fangs are the sharp gripping teeth of predators like dogs, wolves, and big cats.

2. a hollow, needle-like tooth that a venomous snake uses to inject poison into its

2.nounB2
Definition

a hollow, needle-like tooth that a venomous snake uses to inject poison into its prey

Example

The cobra's hollow fangs shot venom deep into Omar's bare ankle.

collocation: hollow fangs

A rattlesnake can fold its fangs flat against the roof of its mouth.

collocation: fold its fangs

Common collocations
  • hollow fangs
  • venomous fangs
  • fold its fangs
  • inject venom through fangs

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1 (SHARP TOOTH): this sense refers specifically to the hollow, venom-injecting teeth of snakes such as cobras, vipers, and rattlesnakes. Not all snakes have these — many non-venomous snakes have simple teeth without grooves or hollow channels.

Common Mistakes

Every snake uses its fangs to inject venom.
Only venomous snakes have hollow fangs for injecting venom.
Many snakes have teeth but lack the specialised hollow fangs needed to deliver venom.

Word family

  • fanged
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

A fang is the long, sharp tooth of a meat-eating animal, used for gripping and tearing — think of a wolf or a tiger. The word canine refers to the same tooth type in scientific language, but it is the formal anatomical term for all mammals including humans. A tusk is also a long tooth, but it sticks out of the mouth continuously (like an elephant's or a walrus's) and is used for digging, fighting, or display rather than tearing flesh. An incisor is a flat front tooth for cutting food — the opposite shape and function. A molar is a broad, flat back tooth built for grinding. So if you picture a snarling dog, you are seeing fangs; if you picture a dentist's chart, you are looking at canines, incisors, and molars.

canine ↗tusk ↗incisor ↗molar ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • bare one's fangs
  • sink one's fangs into

Etymology

Proto-GermanicOld EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

The word fang comes from Old English fang, meaning 'a seizing, catching, or plunder'. It is related to the verb 'to fang' which once meant 'to grasp or take hold of'. Over time, the meaning narrowed from the general act of seizing to the specific body part used to seize — the long, sharp tooth of a predator. The connection survives in the phrase 'to sink one's fangs into something', which still carries the old sense of gripping and holding on.

First known use

1555

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1a Noun (2)