spider web

spider web
noun
1. a web resembling the webs spun by spiders
• Syn: ↑spider's web
• Hypernyms: ↑web, ↑entanglement
2. a web spun by spiders to trap insect prey
• Syn: ↑spider's web
• Hypernyms: ↑web
• Hyponyms: ↑cobweb, ↑funnel web, ↑orb web, ↑sheet web

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noun also spider's web
1. : a silk web constructed by a spider especially to entrap prey of threads composed of a viscid fluid that is secreted by glands in the abdomen, is discharged through minute orifices in the spinnerets, and hardens on exposure to the air in a form often characteristic of its family or genus — compare cobweb, orb web
2. : something that resembles or suggests a spider web in form, arrangement, or function

a spider web of railroads

a spider web of airlines

a spider's web of intrigue

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the web that is spun by a spider, made of interlaced threads of viscous fluid that harden on exposure to air.
[1525-35]

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spider web noun
The snare spun by a spider
• • •
Main Entry: ↑spider

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spider web, or spi|der|web «SPY duhr WEHB», noun.
1. the web spun by a spider; cobweb.
2. Figurative. any design or construction of interwoven lines or parts similar to a spider web: »

Driving a rented car from Tempelhof Airport…I soon became lost in a spiderweb of new freeways (New Yorker).

spi|der-web «SPY duhr WEHB», transitive verb, -webbed, -web|bing.
to cover with a network resembling a spider web: »

The Communists have spider-webbed southern China and Laos with roads leading to the Thai and Burmese borders (Time).

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ˈspider's web [spider's web] (especially BrE) (also ˈspider web especially in NAmE) (also web) noun
a fine net of threads made by a spider to catch insects: (figurative)

to be caught in a spider's web of confusion

see also ↑cobweb
See also: ↑web

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Spider web — Spider s Web redirects here. For other uses, see Spider s Web (disambiguation). Spiral orb webs in Karijini, Western Australia …   Wikipedia

  • Spider web — Spi der web , or Spider s web Spi der s web . (Zo[ o]l.) The silken web which is formed by most kinds of spiders, particularly the web spun to entrap their prey; also called {cobweb}. See {Geometric spider}, {Triangle spider}, under {Geometric},… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • spider web — /ˈspaɪdə wɛb/ (say spuyduh web) noun 1. Also, spider s web. a web spun by a spider, used to catch insects. 2. the fine silken thread produced by spiders. 3. something resembling a spider web: a spider web of red marks. Also, spider web, spiderweb …  

  • spider-web — ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷ transitive verb Etymology: spider web : to cover with a web of fine lines suggestive of a spider web plains in progressive countries are … spider webbed with transportation lines C.L.White & G.T.Renner …   Useful english dictionary

  • spider web — the web that is spun by a spider, made of interlaced threads of viscous fluid that harden on exposure to air. Also, spider s web. [1525 35] * * * …   Universalium

  • spider web — network spun by a spider to catch insects for food …   English contemporary dictionary

  • spider web net — formed by a New Guinea spider. A long piece of bamboo is bent over at the end to form a loop and placed in an area where the spiders are common. The spiders spin their web over this loop. The resulting net can be used to scoop up fish of about… …   Dictionary of ichthyology

  • spider web bait — a thick ball of spider webs used to catch gar fish that are entangled by their small teeth …   Dictionary of ichthyology

  • spider web —   Hihi pūnāwelewele, upena nananana, pūnāwelewele …   English-Hawaiian dictionary

  • spider web entanglement — low obstacle made from barbed wire …   English contemporary dictionary

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