(n.) A genus of long, slender, nematoid worms, parasitic in insects until near maturity, when they leave the insect, and live in water, in which they deposit their eggs; -- called also hair eel, hairworm, and hair snake, from the absurd, but common and widely diffused, notion that they are metamorphosed horsehairs.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). gordius. Retrieved September 23, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/gordius/definitions/2013111 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "gordius" http://smartdefine.org/gordius/definitions/2013111 (accessed September 23, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, gordius, Smart Define, viewed 23 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/gordius/definitions/2013111>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "gordius" 27 May 2011. Web. 23 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/gordius/definitions/2013111> |