alligators

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of alligator.

   Several alligators basked on the muddy riverbank in the afternoon sun.

   Tourists photographed the alligators gliding slowly through the swamp.

   Note

   A regular -s plural that gathers up every meaning the singular carries. In zoology it can name the two Alligator species, of the Americas and of China, or the wider family that takes in the caimans. In Nigeria it can mean dwarf crocodiles, and in dated usage crocodiles of any kind. It is also the plural for two machines: a squeezer for the puddle ball and a rock breaker.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of alligator.

   Asphalt alligators under heavy traffic, forming a web of interconnected cracks.

   The old oil painting alligators across its surface as the varnish slowly ages.

   Note

   A verb that takes no object: a surface alligators on its own, the way aging paint, varnish or asphalt breaks into a web of cracks like the reptile's scaled hide. Use it after a singular subject, as in the finish alligators or the road alligators, and never with something being acted on. Its spelling matches the plural noun, so let the sentence decide. A subject before it marks the verb.

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