Etter

Part of speech: verb, noun

Definitions

1. An obsolete term for a poisonous substance or the venom of a creature, used in older English writing
2. A archaic noun meaning poison, or the toxic fluid a snake or spider injects into its victim
3. Old English-derived term for venom or noxious matter, now found mainly in historical texts and dictionaries

Etymology: Long before it named a poison, this word was a spider. Old English speakers called a spider an "ator-coppe," joining "ator," meaning poison or venom, to "coppe," a spider or head. Our modern "attercop," a dialect word for spider, preserves that old pairing, and the poison sense of "ator" survives in dialect "etter." The poison word goes back to a Germanic root that also gave Old Norse "eitr," meaning poison, and Old High German "eitar," meaning pus or venom. The sense of pus and poison suggests a wound-related origin, though the exact root is uncertain.