crocodiley

comparative more crocodiley · superlative most crocodiley · alternative crocodilly

1. informalResembling or characteristic of a crocodile.

   A gorgeous story about companionship between a small crocodiley creature and a dad crocodiley creature.

   2003, Kaz Cooke, “[Dads] More Info”, in Kidwrangling: The Real Guide to Caring for Babies, Toddlers and Preschoolers, Camberwell, Vic.: Viking, →ISBN, part 4 (Parenting), page 404

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   “Incongruous, but there you are,” Finlay added, giving Norma one of his crocodile smiles which had become even more crocodiley since he’d acquired an eye patch.

   1987, Emma Blair [pseudonym; Iain Blair], When Dreams Come True, Anstey, Leics.: Charnwood, F. A. Thorpe (Publishing) Ltd., published 1989, →ISBN, page 594

   You, as Chuck, have to fight your way through myriad levels of baddies – dinosaurs, spiders and weird kind of little red… erm… squidgy things and other small units that suddenly become big crocodiley units.

   1992 July, Patrick McCarthy, “chuck rock”, in Paul Lakin, editor, Game Zone, number 9, London: Dennis Publishing Ltd., page 36, column 3

   His crocodiley mouth seemed to smile at her, and one of the red eyes winked as if he knew what she was thinking. […] Sidri turned his glowing red eyes towards her and started to nod his head, but his big crocodiley jaws slowly opened wide and the nodding stopped. […] Look at him . . . with his crocodiley head and monkey body and frog’s legs. […] Sidri’s crocodiley face blushed pink with pleasure.

   1993, Nigel Hinton, The Finders, London: Puffin Books, published 1994, →ISBN, pages 72, 78–79, 106, and 122–123

   My most interesting sighting is a bleach-blonde mother with a bleach-blonde daughter. They’re almost identical, dressed in matching blue jeans and lace tops. Only the mother’s skin gives her away. It’s wrinkly and crocodiley, especially around her eyes and neck, as if she’s been left out in the sun to dry. Kind of like a sun-dried tomato.

   2005, Brigid Lowry, With Lots of Love from Georgia, Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin, →ISBN, page 123

   It does not look human, although it is humaniform. It has huge, sharp, carnivorous teeth in a wide mouth, reptile eyes, grayish-crocodiley skin.

   2008, Hank Wagner, Christopher Golden, Stephen R. Bissette, “Tekno Comix”, in Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman, New York, N.Y.: St. Martin’s Press, →ISBN, part four (The Comics), page 281

   Synonyms: crocodilelike

2. informalOf a body of water: inhabited by or typical of crocodiles.

   We cross the Mara River at the Karume Ferry. It is a broad, deep, crocodiley and hippopotamusy-looking stream.

   1974, J[ames] H[art] McCown, “[Arrival] June 22”, in Elephants Have the Right of Way: A Year of Content in East Africa, June 21, 1968 – June 21, 1969, Liguori, Mo.: Liguori Publications, →LCCN, page 13

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   I went in for this remembering that I had been informed that there were very nasty crocodiles on the island, and that I had got to get past the mouth of that largest river—as crocodiley-looking a spot as you could wish for, if you had a gun.

   1897, Mary H[enrietta] Kingsley, “Fernando Po and the Bubis”, in Travels in West Africa: Congo Français, Corisco and Cameroons, London: Macmillan and Co., Limited; New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, page 52

   We had to swim three separate channels of the river, each of considerable depth, but so narrow that a couple of strokes landed us on the other side; but they looked so “crocodiley”!

   1899, F[rederick] Vaughan Kirby, “Hunting Elephants on the Mupe”, in Sport in East Central Africa: Being an Account of Hunting Trips in Portuguese and Other Districts of East Central Africa, London: Rowland Ward, Limited […], page 288

   This they found very similar in appearance to the swamp at the end of the creek—a pool or two of stagnant water surrounded by beds of giant reeds and water-plants and a few willowy trees. / Dick viewed it with suspicion. ‘It looks rather crocodiley,’ he remarked. ‘I’m not going poking about in those reeds, I can [t]ell you; I have seen one old gentleman at close quarters, and that’s enough—“his bright smile haun[t]s me still.”’

   1916, William Rainey, “The Mystery of an Ancient Papyrus”, in Chatterbox, Boston, Mass.: Dana Estes & Co., […], chapter IX, page 159, column 2

   We passed many canoes, the paddlers balancing desperately against our wash, fearful lest their keel-less log craft should overbalance, and tip yams, sago, wife and babies into the crocodiley stream.

   1943, Frank Clune, chapter XV, in Prowling through Papua, Sydney, N.S.W.; London: Angus and Robertson Ltd, page 212

   We watched the rising tide and the slow approach of the opposite bank with some anxiety for the quiet part of the river we were crossing looked very “crocodiley”!

   [1960?], L[ily] M[arion] Newton, “The Okavango”, in Faraway Sandy Trails, Johannesburg–Kaapstad: Afrikaanse Pers-Boekhandel (EDMS) BPK, →OCLC, page 172