any terrestrial chelicerate arthropod of the class Arachnida, characterized by simple eyes and four pairs of legs. The group includes the spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites, and harvestmen
Derived forms
arachnidan (aˈrachnidan)
adjective, noun
Word origin
C19: from New Latin Arachnida, from Greek arakhnē spider
arachnid in American English
(əˈræknɪd)
noun
any of a large class (Arachnida) of arthropods, usually with four pairs of legs,either lungs or tracheae, a liquid diet, no antennae, simple eyes, terrestrial environment, sensory pedipalps, and a body divided into cephalothorax and abdomen, including spiders, scorpions, mites, and ticks
Derived forms
arachnidan (aˈrachnidan) (əˈræknɪdən)
adjective, noun
Word origin
< Gr arachnē, spider, akin to L araneus
Examples of 'arachnid' in a sentence
arachnid
Now you tell your little arachnid friend he better not be late next time or I'm personally gonna find him.