Tarantula

noun

1. Any of various large hairy spiders chiefly of the family Theraphosidae, capable of inflicting a bite that is painful but usually not dangerous to humans.
2. A large wolf spider (Lycosa tarentula) of southern Europe, once thought to cause tarantism.
3. A large wolf-spider of southern Europe, Lycosa tarantula or Tarantula apuliæ, whose bite was fabled to cause tarantism; hence, any similar spider of the family Lycosidæ (which see), the species of which are numerous. See also cuts in next column.
4. Any one of the great hairy spiders of the warmer parts of America; a bird-spider or crabspider; any species of Mygale, or of some allied genus. See cuts under falx and Mygale.
5. [capitalized] [NL.] An old genus of spiders, formerly reputed to be poisonous, belonging to the family Lycosidæ, and now usually merged in the genus Lycosa. It rested on such species as T. apuliæ of southern Europe, now known as Lycosa tarantula. See def. 1.