awhirl

American  

[uh-hwurl, uh-wurl] / əˈʰwɜrl, əˈwɜrl /

adjective

1. rotating rapidly; spinning; whirling (usually used predicatively).

   dancers awhirl to the strains of a lively waltz.

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Etymology

Origin of awhirl

First recorded in 1880–85; a- ¹ + whirl

Example Sentences

One of the young women spoke animatedly, hands awhirl as she bantered with her lawyers during a recess.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2017

She drove to Mobile and then drove back again, her mind awhirl with the sort of not very interesting observations that so often pass through the minds of characters in unpublished fiction.

From The Guardian • Jul. 19, 2015

The head spins with options, because Chekhov’s sly and subtle plays are awhirl with all these human contradictions, and beautifully so, when they work.

From Washington Post • Apr. 14, 2015

For four hours that night, the kitchen was awhirl.

From New York Times • Feb. 10, 2012

Despite the fact that I had never seen a court lute, let alone heard one, my mind was too awhirl with thoughts of Denna to absorb much else.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss