spider

spider — noun

1. A small animal with eight legs. Spiders produce sticky silk threads from their b

1.nounA2
Definition

A small animal with eight legs. Spiders produce sticky silk threads from their bodies and use these threads to build webs, which trap insects and other tiny creatures for them to eat.

Example

Asher screamed when he saw a large spider crawling across the bathroom floor.

crawl across + surface — typical movement verb

A small brown spider had spun a web between the fence and the old tree.

spin + web — the core collocation for building webs

Common collocations
  • spin a web
  • weave a web
  • spider web / spider's web
  • spider bite
  • garden spider
  • spider silk
  • crawl across
  • catch in a web
Synonyms
  • arachnid

    The scientific group name that includes spiders, scorpions, and mites. Much more formal and technical than 'spider'.

Grammar Patterns

spider + verb (singular or plural)

a/the spider + verb

Usage Note

Spider is a countable noun. Many people call spiders 'insects' in everyday conversation, but zoologists classify them as arachnids because they have eight legs instead of six and their bodies have two main parts instead of three.

Common Mistakes

Spiders are insects with six legs.
Spiders are arachnids with eight legs.
Insects have six legs and three body parts; spiders have eight legs and two body parts.

Word family

  • spidery
    adjectiveC1
  • spiderweb
    nounB1

Common collocations

Nouns

  • spider web
  • spider silk
  • spider species
  • spider bite

Phrases

  • be afraid of spiders
  • be scared of spiders

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'spider' comes from Old English 'spinnan' meaning 'to spin' — a direct reference to the animal's ability to spin silk. It is related to the modern English words 'spin' and 'spinner'.