Directions: Fill in the blanks with the appropriate word.

The writer, like a spider ____________ a web; the creatures caught in the web have no substance, no reality.

The metaphor compares a writer to a spider spinning a web - both create intricate structures to capture their subjects (ideas for the writer, prey for the spider). "Spins" is the correct verb because spiders spin webs, maintaining the metaphor's logic. The creatures in the web represent ideas or characters that lack substance.