From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishspiderspi‧der /ˈspaɪdə $ -ər/ ●●● S3 noun [countable] 1 HBIa small creature with eight legs, which catches insects using a fine network of sticky threads2 technical a computer program that searches the Internet for the best websites with the information you want, so that you can find it quickly SYN crawler, bot, → crawl the Net/webCOLLOCATIONSphrasesa spider's web (=the network of threads a spider makes)verbsa spider spins/weaves a web (=makes a network of threads)A spider had spun a web between the bars of the gate.a spider climbs somewhereThere's a spider climbing up your leg.a spider crawls somewhereA huge spider just crawled under that chair.a spider scuttles somewhere (=runs quickly)The spider was scuttling towards the door.a spider bites somebodyHe was bitten by a tropical spider in a bunch of bananas.
Examples from the Corpus
spider• The blanched nape of a neck, spiders of hair breaking free of the bun, twirling on the surface.• Forest Goblin Shamans keep small poisonous spiders in their mouths.• Spraying with water is particularly effective for discouraging red spider mite, which flourishes in dry conditions.• Are the answers to the above questions always the same for the same spider?• Mr Popple, upon returning home alone, found the spider floating in the toilet-bowl.• Pepita had been trying to remember the events that led up to being bitten by the black widow spider.• He moved to the far end of the living room and boiled a small young spider plant.Origin spider Old English spithra, from spinnan; → SPIN1