Gila monster in British English
(ˈhiːlə)
noun
a large venomous brightly coloured lizard, Heloderma suspectum, inhabiting deserts of the southwestern US and Mexico and feeding mostly on eggs and small mammals: family Helodermatidae
Also called: GilaWord origin
C19: after the Gila, a river in New Mexico and ArizonaGila monster in American English
US
a stout, sluggish, poisonous lizard (Heloderma suspectum, family Helodermatidae) having a short, stumpy tail and a body covered with beadlike scales arranged in alternating rings of black and orange, pink, or yellow: found in desert regions of the SW U.S. and in Mexico
Word origin
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