sidewinder

sidewinder

1. A variety of rattlesnake characterized by its unique sideways movements. I nearly jumped out of my skin when that sidewinder sped past in front of my horse.
2. slang By extension, an unscrupulous, despicable, or deceitful person. Primarily heard in US. That sidewinder tricked me into investing my life savings in his hedge fund, promising that he would make me a fortune with it. Now I'm left with nothing! These politicians are all sidewinders, exploiting people's fear and anger to further their own careers.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

sidewinder

n. a sneaky and despicable man. (Western jargon. From the name of the sidewinder rattlesnake.) You dirty, lowdown sidewinder! That’s too much!
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • speed off
  • speed by
  • don't tread on me
  • knock (one) sideways
  • knock somebody sideways
  • knock someone sideways
  • be knocked sideways
  • sideways
  • look sideways at
  • look sideways at (someone or something)
References in periodicals archive
Even though the Sidewinder is a bit larger, it will also fit in that phone pocket, and it speaks with somewhat more authority.
This new phase of oil and gas exploration drilling has been initiated 22 months after the initial Sidewinder discovery, infrastructure build and successful 4-well drilling program.
Turkey requested the sale of 117 AIM-9X-2 Sidewinder Block II All-Up-Round Missiles, six AIM-9X-2 Block II Tactical Guidance Units, six dummy air training missiles, 130 LAU-129 Guided Missile Launchers, containers, missile support and testing equipment, provisions, spare parts, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical data and other logistical support.
Ten years later, engineer battalions arrived for training; and by 1993, the Sidewinder Team was born.
Louis for upcoming performances with Sidewinder. She joked with band members between songs and talked with them during lunch, even as a commercial promoting her next performance on "The Voice" appeared on a nearby TV.
The Sidewinder has four wheels but no steering mechanism.
The SideWinder X4 Keyboard excels where other keyboards fail, letting users execute key combinations and taking full advantage of their skill and speed, he stated.
Air Force's Aim-9 air-to-air missle borrowed its "Sidewinder" nickname from the Sidewinder rattlesnake.
This would feature flume slides, a Sidewinder ride, a man-made beach, a wave machine and a lazy river.
SecurityReporter software delivers central monitoring, correlated alerting and reporting of Sidewinder and SnapGear audit streams to identify real security threats from meaningless noise.
-- A switch at Tobyhanna Army Depot from a complete Sidewinder overhaul process to 'repair only as necessary' saves time and money.
S&S Specialty Systems has introduced its Sidewinder equipment, a new generation of roll handling unwind stands.
The lightweight, waterproof Sidewinder LED light has four selectable LED light colors (white, red, green or blue) and intensity levels (including strobe), with an articulating light head that allows precise light placement within a 185-degree range.
A Measure carefully to find the correct size for the material, allowing approximately 2cm (though check your blind's instructions for the exact measurement) for the sidewinder and brackets.