Snaky describes something that winds and curves like a snake, twisting back and forth instead of going straight. A snaky river bends through the landscape in long S-curves. A snaky path through the woods zigzags between trees. When you're hiking and the trail becomes snaky, you can't see very far ahead because it keeps turning.

The word can also describe movement that resembles how a snake slithers. A dancer might make snaky motions with their arms, creating smooth, curving gestures. A garden hose lying on the ground looks snaky with all its loops and coils.

Sometimes people use snaky to describe a person who acts in a sneaky, untrustworthy way, like a snake hiding in tall grass. If someone makes a snaky move in a game, they might be trying to trick you with clever misdirection. This meaning connects to an old association between serpents and deception, though it's worth remembering that real snakes are just animals doing what comes naturally to them.

The related word sinuous means almost the same thing but sounds more formal and is usually used for graceful, flowing curves.