# weaver

/ˈwivɝ/ (US) · /wˈiːvɐ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/weaver
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. a person who makes cloth

noun · CEFR B2

a person who makes cloth or rugs by crossing threads over and under each other on a machine called a loom.

For teachers: a person who weaves fabric, especially one who practices the craft professionally or as a skilled artisan.

- The weaver spent weeks at the loom creating a beautiful wool rug.
- Traditional weavers in the village still use hand-operated looms to produce intricate patterns that modern machines cannot easily replicate.

### 2. a type of bird

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

a small bird from Africa or Asia that builds very complicated nests by weaving grass together.

For teachers: any of various small passerine birds of the family Ploceidae, noted for their elaborate, intricately woven nests.

- We watched the weaver bird use its beak to tie grass into a nest.
- The social weaver is famous for constructing massive communal nests that can house hundreds of individual birds across multiple generations.

### 3. a type of spider

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a spider that makes a specific kind of web, like a flat sheet or a funnel.

For teachers: any of several spider species named for the characteristic structure of their webs, such as the sheet weaver or orb weaver.

- The garden was full of webs made by orb weavers after the rain.
- The funnel weaver wait at the back of its silk tube for the vibrations of an insect hitting the sheet-like part of the web.

### 4. basket making material

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a long, flexible piece of wood or grass used to go across the main frame of a basket.

For teachers: a horizontal strand of flexible material used to interlace with the vertical spokes in basketry.

- She soaked the willow weaver in water to make it easier to bend.
- The artisan carefully guided the weaver over and under the upright stakes to ensure the basket walls remained tight and uniform.

## Examples

- The weaver uses colorful wool to make a beautiful rug.
- In the small village, every weaver follows a traditional pattern passed down through many generations.
- The novelist is a master weaver of plots, skillfully connecting several seemingly unrelated characters into a single, satisfying conclusion by the final chapter.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.