web spinner

American

noun

any of several slender insects, of the order Embioptera, that nest in colonies in silken webs spun with secretions from the enlarged front legs.

web spinner British

noun

any small fragile dull-coloured typically tropical insect of the order Embioptera, which has biting mouthparts and constructs silken tunnels in which to live

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of web spinner

First recorded in 1905–10

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.

When his daughter went out and Brouillard was about to follow her, the genial web spinner stopped him.

From Project Gutenberg

"I know Gene," said the web spinner cryptically, and this was the word that Brouillard took with him when he went back to his offices in the Niquoia Building.

From Project Gutenberg

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023