spiral

American  

[spahy-ruhl] / ˈspaɪ rəl /

noun

• spirals
  plural

1. Geometry. a plane curve generated by a point moving around a fixed point while constantly receding from or approaching it.

2. a helix.

3. a single circle or ring of a spiral or helical curve or object.

4. a spiral or helical object, formation, or form.

5. Aeronautics. a maneuver in which an airplane descends in a helix of small pitch and large radius, with the angle of attack within that of the normal flight range.

6. Football. a type of kick or pass in which the ball turns on its longer axis as it flies through the air.

7. Economics. a continuous increase in costs, wages, prices, etc. inflationary spiral, or a decrease in costs, wages, prices, etc. deflationary spiral.

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adjective

1. running continuously around a fixed point or center while constantly receding from or approaching it; coiling in a single plane.

   a spiral curve.

2. coiling around a fixed line or axis in a constantly changing series of planes; helical.

3. of or of the nature of a spire or coil.

4. bound with a spiral binding; spiral-bound.

   a spiral notebook.

verb (used without object)

• spirals,
  present (3rd person singular)
• spiraled,
  past participle,  past
• spiralled,
  past participle,  past (especially British)
• spiraling,
  present participle
• spiralling
  present participle (especially British)

1. to take a spiral form or course.

2. to advance or increase steadily; rise.

   Costs have been spiraling all year.

3. Aeronautics. to fly an airplane through a spiral course.

verb (used with object)

• spirals,
  present (3rd person singular)
• spiraled,
  past participle,  past
• spiralled,
  past participle,  past (especially British)
• spiraling,
  present participle
• spiralling
  present participle (especially British)

1. to cause to take a spiral form or course.

spiral British  

/ ˈspaɪərəl /

noun

1. geometry one of several plane curves formed by a point winding about a fixed point at an ever-increasing distance from it. Polar equation of Archimedes spiral: r = a θ; of logarithmic spiral: log r = a θ; of hyperbolic spiral: r θ = a, (where a is a constant)

2. another name for helix

3. something that pursues a winding, usually upward, course or that displays a twisting form or shape

4. a flight manoeuvre in which an aircraft descends describing a helix of comparatively large radius with the angle of attack within the normal flight range Compare spin

5. economics a continuous upward or downward movement in economic activity or prices, caused by interaction between prices, wages, demand, and production

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adjective

1. having the shape of a spiral

verb

1. to assume or cause to assume a spiral course or shape

2. (intr) to increase or decrease with steady acceleration

   wages and prices continue to spiral

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• spirality
  noun
• multispiral
  adjective
• nonspiral
  adjective
• subspiral
  adjective
• unspiral
  adjective
• unspiraled
  adjective
• unspiralled
  adjective
• spirally
  adverb
• subspirally
  adverb
• unspirally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• spirals
  plural

Participles

• spiraling
  present
• spiralling
  present
• spiraled
  past
• spiralled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• spiral
  simple
• spirals
  simple
• have spiraled
  perfect
• have spiralled
  perfect
• has spiraled
  perfect
• has spiralled
  perfect
• am spiraling
  progressive
• am spiralling
  progressive
• are spiraling
  progressive
• are spiralling
  progressive
• is spiraling
  progressive
• is spiralling
  progressive
• have been spiraling
  perfect progressive
• have been spiralling
  perfect progressive
• has been spiraling
  perfect progressive
• has been spiralling
  perfect progressive

Past

• spiraled
  simple
• spiralled
  simple
• had spiraled
  perfect
• had spiralled
  perfect
• was spiraling
  progressive
• was spiralling
  progressive
• were spiraling
  progressive
• were spiralling
  progressive
• had been spiraling
  perfect progressive
• had been spiralling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will spiral
  simple
• will have spiraled
  perfect
• will have spiralled
  perfect
• will be spiraling
  progressive
• will be spiralling
  progressive
• will have been spiraling
  perfect progressive
• will have been spiralling
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of spiral

1545–55; < Medieval Latin spīrālis, equivalent to Latin spīr ( a ) coil (< Greek speîra anything coiled, wreathed, or twisted; see spire ²) + -ālis -al ¹

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Explanation

A spiral is a coil or curl, like the shape of a piece of hair wound around your finger, a Slinky toy, or a corkscrew. A curve forming a series of circles that become gradually larger or smaller is one kind of spiral. You can also use the word as a verb when something moves in a spiral shape: "Then the wind died and I watched my kite spiral down to the ground." The origin of spiral is the Medieval Latin spiralis, which means "winding or coiling," from a Greek root: speira, "coil, twist, or wreath."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

spiral spirals spiraled spiralled spiraling spiralling

The motor's central component is a specially designed spiral molecule created by the research group of Prof. Michael Pittelkow at the University of Copenhagen.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 1, 2026

This is not the perfect spiral the Chargers were expecting.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

As mounting interest charges further widen the deficit, a debt spiral could take hold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026

The fall-out means this now looks increasingly like Grealish's 'now or never' moment, because failure at Everton will surely mark a downward spiral from the top echelons of the Premier League.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026

The spinning of the earth causes these mighty waves to spiral endlessly to the east, building momentum as they go.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong

Her husband’s anxiety grows as his film spirals out of control.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Other countries have fallen victim to debt spirals, where high levels of debt lead investors to demand higher interest rates, in turn fueling more borrowing until eventually a country defaults.

From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026

Roll it out cinnamon-roll style, spread with cream cheese, Parmesan, herbs and hot giardiniera, then coil, slice and nestle the spirals together in a buttered skillet.

From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026

"I have a two or three-part storyline where a dog is let loose into the House of Lords by a lobbyist during a vet bill and that spirals out of control," Brewis said.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

The affectionately titled “Local Group” contains only two large galaxies of any size, both spirals: the Milky Way and M31.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

French authorities are seeking to reassert control over the protests after they spiraled into widespread destruction last weekend.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026

Material pulled from the star formed a disk around the black hole and became intensely hot as it spiraled inward.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

Commentators draw parallels with other intractable conflicts, and count the taxpayer money they say has spiraled down the drain.

From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2026

But where other artists might have spiraled, White and his compatriots transcended, turning inward while also looking to the stars.

From Salon ● Jun. 7, 2026

Thoughts spun about in my mind like a swirl of dust caught in the wind, but the ones that spiraled back the strongest were Ucho’s words about the shaman.

From "The Ugly One" by Leanne Statland Ellis

"The first Test in Durban spiralled out of control in terms of behaviour, then in Port Elizabeth for the second Test, there were still some fireworks going on. We still didn't understand."

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

He had "spiralled into depression" after losing his job as a batting coach in 2022.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

The campaigns come one year after protests over lavish perks for lawmakers spiralled into general anti-government anger -- Indonesia's biggest unrest since President Prabowo Subianto took office in 2024.

From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026

"I needed therapy because my mental health had spiralled way out of control... but I never understood why," said Mellissa.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Orion’s mechanical pupils spiralled into tiny, glowing points.

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan

In satellite images nor'easters can look strikingly like a hurricane, with spiraling clouds forming over the ocean that span hundreds of miles of coastline.

From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026

The United Nations, now with a fixed escalator, kicks off its General Assembly, with all attention on the spiraling war in the Middle East.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026

Its orbit is extremely close to Mars, and the moon is gradually spiraling inward.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 19, 2026

The gap makes a durable dialogue—the kind that might keep the competition from spiraling into a crisis neither government is prepared to manage—a tall order.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Each spiraling ladder of your DNA is a single, amazingly complex molecule.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland

Countries across Europe have been swept by a wave of protests by young people angry at the spiralling cost of living who have little trust in traditional institutions.

From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026

But the law has not stopped the spiralling prices and popular discontent.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

Chancellor John Healey said he was "very conscious" of people being hit by spiralling fuel prices caused by international factors.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

BBC's Jessica Murphy explains how Canada has more leverage than it may seem in the spiralling dispute.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026

Three paper aeroplanes were already spiralling upward in the breeze, heading to gods knew where.

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan

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Related Words

• circling
• coiled

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