spider
Americannoun
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spiders
plural
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any of numerous predaceous arachnids of the order Araneae, most of which spin webs that serve as nests and as traps for prey.
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(loosely) any of various other arachnids resembling or suggesting these.
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any of various things resembling or suggesting a spider.
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a frying pan, originally one with legs or feet.
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a trivet or tripod, as for supporting a pot or pan on a hearth.
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Machinery.
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a part having a number of radiating spokes or arms, usually not connected at their outer ends.
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Also called cross. (in a universal joint) a crosslike part pivoted between the forked ends of two shafts to transmit motion between them.
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Digital Technology. a computer program that follows and catalogs links within websites in order to index web pages for a search engine.
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an evil person who entraps or lures others by wiles.
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a device attached to a cultivator, for pulverizing the soil.
verb (used with object)
noun
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any predatory silk-producing arachnid of the order Araneae, having four pairs of legs and a rounded unsegmented body consisting of abdomen and cephalothorax See also wolf spider trap-door spider tarantula black widow
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any of various similar or related arachnids
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a hub fitted with radiating spokes or arms that serve to transmit power or support a load
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agriculture an instrument used with a cultivator to pulverize soil
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any implement or tool having the shape of a spider
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nautical a metal frame fitted at the base of a mast to which halyards are tied when not in use
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any part of a machine having a number of radiating spokes, tines, or arms
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Also called: octopus. a cluster of elastic straps fastened at a central point and used to hold a load on a car rack, motorcycle, etc
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billiards snooker a rest having long legs, used to raise the cue above the level of the height of the ball
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angling an artificial fly tied with a hackle and no wings, perhaps originally thought to imitate a spider
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computing a computer program that is capable of performing sophisticated recursive searches on the internet
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short for spider phaeton
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of spider
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English spithre, Old English spīthra, akin to spinnan “to spin”; cognate with Danish spinder. See spin
Explanation
A spider is a small, eight-legged animal. Some people scream when they see a spider, but most of the time spiders won’t hurt you. You might think of spiders as falling into the category of "bugs," but they're not insects at all—spiders, like ticks and scorpions, are arachnids. Most spiders are harmless to people and helpful in controlling insect populations. Spiders feed on bugs that get caught in their sticky webs. The Germanic root of spider means "spinner." If you are terrified of spiders, you may suffer from arachnophobia, from the Latin arachnid, "spider," and phobia, "fear."
Vocabulary lists containing spider
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Any comic book fan knows that Spider-Man's secret identity is Peter Parker, a science nerd who gained superhero powers after being bitten by a radioactive spider.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
As ever, Zendaya stole the show with a floor-length Tamara Ralph champagne silk crepe gown with spider webby straps, matching the white carpet in Leicester Square.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
“Self-Portrait With Monkeys” features the raven-haired artist unfazed by the presence of four spider monkeys — two touching her while the others peer from tropical foliage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
"Since this spider was the first polymorphic from this region, we decided to make it an ode to the amazing mountain ranges."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
He wasn’t too eager to think about anything, even a spider, getting washed away.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
Its appearance bears little obvious resemblance to the spiders and scorpions that descended from its broader evolutionary lineage.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
Whether associated with the deadly reputation of the Black Widow or the fictional bite that transformed Spider-Man, fangs have become one of the most recognizable features of spiders.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
The birds thrive in lowland heath habitats, nesting in the dense gorse, where they also hunt for spiders and caterpillars.
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
“Arachnophilia,” or love of spiders, Ms. Tatar writes, “is a word that you will not yet find in a dictionary.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
That spiders do not have to dine regularly and that some can thrive as long as two years without a bite.
From "In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson" by Bette Bao Lord
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
