asp

Etymology 1

From Middle English aspe, from Old French aspe, from Latin aspis, aspidis (“asp, viper; shield”), from Ancient Greek ἀσπίς (aspís, “shield; Egyptian cobra Naja haje”); compare Middle English aspide.

noun

1. (archaic) A water snake.
2. A venomous viper native to southwestern Europe (Vipera aspis).
3. The Egyptian cobra (Naja haje).
4. (figurative) An evil person; a snake.
5. A type of European fish (Aspius aspius).

Etymology 2

From Middle English aspe (aspen (in compounds)), from Old English æspe (æspan (in compounds)), from Proto-West Germanic *aspu, from Proto-Germanic *aspō, from Proto-Indo-European *Hosp-. See also Dutch esp, German Espe, Swedish and Norwegian Bokmål asp, Norwegian Nynorsk osp; also Welsh aethnen, Latin abiēs (“fir”), Latvian apse, Polish osa, Old Armenian ոփի (opʿi, “poplar”).

noun

1. The aspen tree.

Etymology 3

noun

1. (UK, law, in citation) Initialism of w:Act of the Scottish Parliament.
   Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009 (2009 asp 9)