What does "spider" mean?
Any of various eight-legged, predatory arthropods, of the order Araneae, most of which spin webs to catch prey.
Spider
/ˈspaɪ̯də/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Any of various eight-legged, predatory arthropods, of the order Araneae, most of which spin webs to catch prey.
- Grammar: spider is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: arachnid, arachnid, aranea, arthropod.
- Useful contrasts: deindex, ignore, manual indexing.
- Usage evidence: The spider responds with a swift attack.
How to use "spider"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "spider" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "spider" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "spider" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "spider" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "spider" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "arachnid" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "spider", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any of various eight-legged, predatory arthropods, of the order Araneae, most of which spin webs to catch prey. countable, uncountable
"Little Miss Muffet, She sat on a tuffet, Eating of curds and whey; There came a little spider, Who sat down beside her, And frighted Miss Muffet away."
- 2 predatory arachnid with eight legs, two poison fangs, two feelers, and usually two silk-spinning organs at the back end of the body; they spin silk to make cocoons for eggs or traps for prey wordnet
- 3 A program which follows links on the World Wide Web in order to gather information. Internet, countable, uncountable
"Crawler-based search engines have three major elements. The first is the spider, also called the crawler, which visits a web page, reads it, and then follows links to other pages within the site."
- 4 a skillet made of cast iron wordnet
- 5 A float (drink) made by mixing ice-cream and a soda or fizzy drink (such as lemonade). Australia, New-Zealand, countable, uncountable
"2002, Katharine Gasparini, Cranberry and vanilla ice cream spider, recipe in Cool Food, page 339."
Show 18 more definitions
- 6 a computer program that prowls the internet looking for publicly accessible resources that can be added to a database; the database can then be searched with a search engine wordnet
- 7 An alcoholic drink made with brandy and lemonade or ginger beer. Australia, New-Zealand, countable, obsolete, uncountable
- 8 A spindly person. countable, slang, uncountable
- 9 A man who persistently approaches or accosts a woman in a public social setting, particularly in a bar. countable, slang, uncountable
- 10 A stick with a convex arch-shaped notched head used to support the cue when the cue ball is out of reach at normal extension. countable, uncountable
- 11 A cast-iron frying pan with three legs, once common in open-hearth cookery. UK, US, countable, dialectal, historical, uncountable
"Cut slices and lay them in cold water in the spider; boil them up two or three minutes, then pour off the water and set the spider again on the coals and brown the slices on each side."
- 12 Implement for moving food in and out of hot oil for deep frying, with a circular metal mesh attached to a long handle; a spider skimmer countable, uncountable
"If you are deep-frying your falafel, use a spider or basket to place them gently into the hot oil, which should be preheated to a temperature of 175°C (330°F)."
- 13 A part of a crank, to which the chainrings are attached. countable, uncountable
- 14 Heroin. slang, uncountable
- 15 Part of a resonator instrument that transmits string vibrations from the bridge to a resonator cone at multiple points. countable, uncountable
- 16 A skeleton or frame with radiating arms or members, often connected by crosspieces, such as a casting forming the hub and spokes to which the rim of a fly wheel or large gear is bolted; the body of a piston head; or a frame for strengthening a core or mould for a casting. countable, uncountable
- 17 A soft-hackle fly. England, countable, uncountable
- 18 The network of wires separating the areas of a dartboard. countable, uncountable
- 19 A spider graph or spider tree. countable, uncountable
- 20 A type of light phaeton. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"I am also disappointed with the horses, having hardly seen a decent pair yet, while the traps and horses do not look smart and well groomed. There are a great many American spiders used. Have not seen a bullock in the yoke yet."
- 21 A support for a camera tripod, preventing it from sliding. countable, uncountable
"The spider is very useful for shooting in the studio or on locations with smooth floors where tripod legs tend to slide."
- 22 A competition in which several participants are spread evenly around the edges of the green, who all make one bowl towards the central jack at the same time; the winner being the person whose bowl ends up closest to the jack. countable, uncountable
- 23 A bit for turning fasteners with 8-pointed heads. countable, uncountable
Verb
- 1 To move like a spider. intransitive
"A year later she returned to El Cap and spidered up the wall again — this time in 23 hours."
- 2 To cover a surface like a cobweb. intransitive
"High walls surrounded it on all sides, each one covered with the skeletal stems of climbing plants that spidered across the stones, and the ground was cobbled between patches of frozen grass."
- 3 To follow links on the World Wide Web in order to gather information. Internet
"The online dictionary is regularly spidered by search engines."
Proper Noun
- 1 The 29th sura (chapter) of the Qur'an.
Example
"The spider responds with a swift attack."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "spider"?
Common synonyms include: arachnid, arachnid, aranea, arthropod, beetle, bug.
How do you use "spider" in a sentence?
The spider responds with a swift attack.
How do you pronounce "spider"?
Pronounced /ˈspaɪ̯də/.
Etymology
From Middle English spiþre, spydyr, spider, spiþer, from Old English spīþra (“spider”), from Proto-West Germanic *spinþrijō, from Proto-Germanic *spinnaną (“to spin”). Mostly displaced attercop (“spider, unpleasant person”), now a dialectal term. Compare typologically Proto-Slavic *mězgyrь (whence Russian мизги́рь (mizgírʹ)) (akin to Latvian mežģīt), Turkish örümcek (akin to örmek).