Pedants please help: spider web or spiderweb?

[NoneButOurselves]

Just that. Thanks in advance for any advice.

Oxford says spiderweb is a word. To me, it doesn't look very elegant and I prefer the suggested spider's web, but it's a matter of taste, I reckon.

www.lexico.com/en/definition/spiderweb

Spider's web.

Spiderweb - if it were two words it would be spider's web or even spider-web, but I'm pretty sure it's spiderweb.

Yeah spider's web is what I'd use. Or cobweb!

Spider's web.

I have noticed use of the possessive dwindling a bit. People talk about 'boy names' and 'girl names' on here these days rather than boys' and girls' names.

Spider’s web.

I think you would use spiderweb as a description of something that was like a spider’s web.

I have noticed use of the possessive dwindling a bit. People talk about 'boy names' and 'girl names' on here these days rather than boys' and girls' names.

That’s interesting since that’s how it’d be in Scandinavian languages (except in one word). As if English is going more Germanic.

Many thanks. That's exactly what I need to know, as 'spiderweb' is being used to describe a set of relationships.

Very grateful to the learned pedants!

DadDad thanks for the link to that Oxford website. I haven't seen it before and it's handy.

But ... wait... this is horrifying...the OXFORD site only uses American spellings ??? As in 'nearest match for organise is organize'. Please tell me you share my outrage.

What the actual fuck? No.

But ... wait... this is horrifying...the OXFORD site only uses American spellings ??? As in 'nearest match for organise is organize'. Please tell me you share my outrage.

No. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_spelling

There was an episode of Morse in which he declared a suspect to be illiterate because he used '-ise' rather than '-ize'.

That was too harsh. Both are acceptable in British English. IMO '-ise' needs to be retained as its much better for inclusion in a crossword, I'd have thought Morse would have realised that.

Cobweb