I. noun 1. a mythical reptile with a lethal gaze or breath, hatched by a serpent from a cock’s egg. 2.
[Heraldry] another term for cockatrice.
3. a long, slender, and mainly bright green lizard found in Central America, the male of which has a crest running from the head to the tail. It can swim well, and is able to run on its hind legs across the surface of water.● Basiliscus plumifrons, family Iguanidae.
– origin late Middle English: via Latin from Greek basiliskos ‘little king, serpent’, from basileus ‘king’.