reptilityn.
/rɛpˈtɪlᵻti/, U.S. /rɛpˈtɪlᵻdi/ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by habit > [noun] > creeping, climbing, or spiring
rampinga1425
reptility1657
spiring1707
1657 R. Tomlinson tr. J. de Renou Medicinal Materials i, in Medicinal Dispensatory sig. Zz3 Knot-grasse..called..Serpinaca from its reptility [L. serpendo].
2. (a) The nature or condition of being reptilian. (b) figurative. Reptilian character or conduct; devious or sly behaviour; baseness; (also) a disagreeable or undignified matter.
ΚΠ
1719 W. Wagstaffe Let. A. Tripe (new ed.) 33 His Language was hard as an Oyster-Shell, and he abounded in..opprobrious Apellations and Reptility of Nonsense.
1723 W. Nicholls Conf. with Theist (ed. 3) I. i. 129 As for the natural Reptility of the Serpent, it is plain from this History it is false.
1745 A. Hill Wks. II. 250 One might pronounce him fallen below contempt, but that he aims to heave, in his reptility.
1795 Parl. Reg. Ireland XV. 148 He..intended to send a character to the Upper House..as a contrast and correction to the spawn and reptility that had crept into that august assembly.
1828 S. T. Coleridge Coll. Lett. (1971) VI. 762 I understand..that..the other Annual..is..not very reputable to the Editor... But I am weary of writing about these Reptilities—& must defer the rest to the time, I shall be able to talk with you.
1839 Morning Chron. 17 Apr. 2/5 The sinuosities are magnified, and there is a general expansion of the self-involved reptility.
1921 Rep. 15th Meeting Australasian Assoc. Advancement Sci. p. lxxxvi The earliest mammals..are only, as it were, just emerging from reptility—they still lay eggs, but they also suckle their young.
1962 Gastonia (N. Carolina) Gaz. 24 Jan. I find Dr. Alan Nunn May a fascinating study in reptility.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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