spider crab

Any of various crabs of the family Majidae, having long thin legs and a relatively small triangular body and often camouflaging the body with seaweed or sponges.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

spider crab

(Animals) any of various crabs of the genera Macropodia, Libinia, etc, having a small triangular body and very long legs

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

spi′der crab`

any of various crabs of the family Majidae, having long, slender legs and a comparatively small, triangular body.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

spider crab - any of numerous crabs with very long legs and small triangular bodies

crab - decapod having eyes on short stalks and a broad flattened carapace with a small abdomen folded under the thorax and pincers

family Majidae, Majidae - spider crabs

European spider crab, Maja squinado, king crab - a large spider crab of Europe

giant crab, Macrocheira kaempferi - very large deep-water Japanese crab

Translations

granceola

spider crab

n → grancevola

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

Mentioned in

References in periodicals archive

Larval development of the spider crab Mithrax pleuracanthus Stimpson reared in the laboratory (Decapoda: Brachyura: Majidae).

Sexual dimorphism, allometry, and size at first maturity of the caribbean king crab, Mithrax spinosissimus, in the Florida keys

One of the star attractions of the Sea Life centre's Claws display will be this giant Japanese spider crab.

Sealife's new residents are feeling crabby

So when you see glistening lobster, crab, spider crab and bass on the fishmongers counter consider the big effort that goes into the catch.

THIS weekend is the [...]

Spider Crab I'm not a big fan of spiders or crabs, so this dustbin lid-sized cross between the two could well have been put on the planet with the sole aim of giving me nightmares.

Scary Animals at the Hancock Museum

10&11 FOOD Spider crab, spider crab, does whatever a spider crab can.

CONTENTS

Nicknamed "Crabzilla", the Japanse spider crab can grow to up to 15ft.

CLAW BLIMEY! IT'S CRABZILLA

MAT Follas was last night crowned winner of MasterChef 2009, after preparing a three-course meal consisting of wild ingredients including rabbit, spider crab and lavender.

Chef Mat masters TV kitchen

A large tropical spider crab has just passed with flying colors the first feasibility test of this strategy.

Diet for a blue planet; tasty crabs, sold on the dock for $4 per pound, are the first edible success of a novel approach to ocean farming

The largest known species of crab are the Japanese spider crab (a staggering 12ft) or the Butchus Wilkinsus (6ft and staggering), but the Whitstable monster is about 50ft wide.

EAM, SHOOT & EAT THAT CRAB

That giant crab, believed by some to be a "Spider Crab", possibly imported from the Far East, has been seen in Hilbre Island's Ladies' Cave many times over the years.

TALES FROM THE PAST; Flash back

The sea and coast is now coming alive as fresh lobster, crab, spider crab and bass plus a host of other fish are landed.

wine notes

Sir David Attenborough was pinched by the spider crab at the popular attraction while filming his new series First Animals.

Wildlife legend feels the pinch