crab spider
noun
: any of a family (Thomisidae) of spiders that resemble crabs in shape and in being able to walk forward, backward, and sideways see also giant crab spider
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The spider is a goldenrod crab spider (Misumena vatia). 
oregonlive, 3 July 2022 The preballooning behavior of a crab spider, Xysticus spp., captured on film for a 2018 PLOS Biology study. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 4 Apr. 2022 That would be Mofeed Abu Shalwa, whose winning images included a red palm weevil and a flower crab spider. Daniel Berehulak, National Geographic, 23 Oct. 2020 The results of his experiment, published recently in PLOS Biology, reveal that crab spiders do not just hurl themselves randomly into the air, but are instead careful, deliberate fliers. Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 18 June 2018 The specimens that Cho used in his experiment only measured between 0.12 and 0.24 inches long, but crab spiders are actually larger than most ballooning arachnids, making them good candidates for study. Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 18 June 2018 The flights of spiders are well known, but not their physics, so Mr. Cho tested crab spiders both in nature and in a wind tunnel, and discovered, among other things, what holds the spiders up in the air. James Gorman, New York Times, 26 June 2018 Researcher Moonsung Cho studied one of these species, the crab spider. Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, 15 June 2018 See More
oregonlive, 3 July 2022 The preballooning behavior of a crab spider, Xysticus spp., captured on film for a 2018 PLOS Biology study. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 4 Apr. 2022 That would be Mofeed Abu Shalwa, whose winning images included a red palm weevil and a flower crab spider. Daniel Berehulak, National Geographic, 23 Oct. 2020 The results of his experiment, published recently in PLOS Biology, reveal that crab spiders do not just hurl themselves randomly into the air, but are instead careful, deliberate fliers. Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 18 June 2018 The specimens that Cho used in his experiment only measured between 0.12 and 0.24 inches long, but crab spiders are actually larger than most ballooning arachnids, making them good candidates for study. Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, 18 June 2018 The flights of spiders are well known, but not their physics, so Mr. Cho tested crab spiders both in nature and in a wind tunnel, and discovered, among other things, what holds the spiders up in the air. James Gorman, New York Times, 26 June 2018 Researcher Moonsung Cho studied one of these species, the crab spider. Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, 15 June 2018 See More Word History
First Known Use
1855, in the meaning defined above