Etymology Explorer › Middle English

Where does “spider” come from?

spider (Middle English) comes from Middle English spiþre, from Old English spīþra, from Proto-West Germanic *spinþrijō, from Proto-Indo-European (s)penh₁- — to twist; to weave.

spider (Middle English): Alternative form of spiþre

Definitions

  1. Alternative form of spiþre

Ancestry of “spider”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishspiþreA spider
2Old Englishspīþraspider
3Proto-West Germanic*spinþrijō—
4Proto-Indo-European(s)penh₁-to twist; to weave

Words derived from “spider”

  • spider
  • spidery
  • Spidey
  • spiderlike
  • spiderwort
  • spidergram
  • spiderling
  • spiderish
  • spiderhunter
  • seaspider
  • spideriness
  • spiderdom
  • spiderless
  • rockspider
  • spiderwood
  • spideresque
  • sea-spider
  • spiderman
  • spidership
  • cross spider
  • respider
  • spider-fear
  • spider
  • スパイダー
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)penh₁- →