volute

[ vuh-loot ]
See synonyms for: volutevolutedvolution on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. a spiral or twisted formation or object.

  2. Architecture. a spiral ornament, found especially in the capitals of the Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite orders.

  1. Carpentry. a horizontal scrolled termination to the handrail of a stair.

  2. Zoology.

    • a turn or whorl of a spiral shell.

    • any of various tropical marine gastropods of the family Volutidae, many species of which have shells prized for their coloration.

  3. the spiral casing surrounding the impeller of a centrifugal pump.

adjective
  1. having a volute or rolled-up form.

  2. Machinery.

    • spirally shaped or having a part so shaped.

    • moving in a circular way, especially if combined with a lateral motion.

Origin of volute

1
First recorded in 1690–1700; from French or directly from Latin volūta “a scroll,” feminine noun use of volūtus, past participle of volvere “to turn”; see revolve

Other words from volute

  • vo·lut·ed, adjective
  • vo·lu·tion, noun
  • in·ter·vo·lute, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use volute in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for volute

volute

/ (ˈvɒljuːt, vəˈluːt) /


noun
  1. a spiral or twisting turn, form, or object; spiral; whorl

  2. Also called: helix a carved ornament, esp as used on an Ionic capital, that has the form of a spiral scroll

  1. any of the whorls of the spirally coiled shell of a snail or similar gastropod mollusc

  2. any tropical marine gastropod mollusc of the family Volutidae, typically having a spiral shell with beautiful markings

  3. a tangential part, resembling the volute of a snail's shell, that collects the fluids emerging from the periphery of a turbine, impeller pump, etc

adjectivealso: voluted (vəˈluːtɪd)
  1. having the form of a volute; spiral

  2. machinery moving in a spiral path

Origin of volute

1
C17: from Latin volūta a spiral decoration, from volūtus rolled, from volvere to roll up

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012