gyration

American  

[jahy-ray-shuhn] / dʒaɪˈreɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of gyrating; circular or spiral motion; revolution; rotation; whirling.

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gyration British  

/ dʒaɪˈreɪʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of gyrating; rotation

2. any one of the whorls of a spiral-shaped shell

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Other Word Forms

• gyrational
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of gyration

First recorded in 1605–15, gyration is from the Late Latin word gȳrātiōn- (stem of gȳrātiō ). See gyrate, -ion

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Explanation

The act of turning quickly in a circle is gyration. The gyration of a whirling amusement park ride might leave your head spinning long after you get off. A hula hoop whiz is an expert at gyration, whirling the hoops around their hips, arms, and legs (maybe all at once — that's a lot of gyration!). This kind of fast, circular movement is what gyration is all about, from an old verb, gyre, "rotate or revolve." In math, a gyration is a very specific type of rotation. When a sphere rotates around a point that's not at its center, it's an example of gyration.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gyration

“But with every single gyration of the market, she was very uneasy seeing her account go down,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2025

Radius of gyration, coefficient of restitution and other obscure forces cause tethered pins to fly around differently than their free-fall counterparts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 21, 2023

In many of these passages, facts, gyration, jive and comedy are cut across one another yet in equilibrium.

From New York Times ● Jun. 24, 2021

Find the radii of gyration with respect to the x-axis, the y-axis, and the origin.

From Textbooks ● Mar. 30, 2016

Jack broke out of his gyration and stood facing Ralph.

From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding

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