gyratory

American  

[jahy-ruh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] / ˈdʒaɪ rəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

adjective

1. moving in a circle or spiral; gyrating.

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Etymology

Origin of gyratory

First recorded in 1810–20; gyrat(ion) + -ory ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gyratory

Dr Malik Saleh, a dentist stuck at the Hanger Lane gyratory, has been forced to cancel appointments.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2021

Activists have also blocked Wandsworth Bridge, Arnos Grove and the Hanger Lane gyratory, the group says.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2021

Further along is the Double Sky Wheel, a king-sized dumbbell with gyratory center beam supporting two independent wheels that can't decide whether to plunge suicidally earthward or whiz away toward Mars.

From Time Magazine Archive

There is no precise estimate of the velocity of the gyratory motion.

From Narrative of the Circumnavigation of the Globe by the Austrian Frigate Novara, Volume I (Commodore B. Von Wullerstorf-Urbair,) Undertaken by Order of the Imperial Government in the Years 1857, 1858, & 1859, Under the Immediate Auspices of His I. and R. Highness the Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian, Commander-In-Chief of the Austrian Navy. by Karl Ritter von Scherzer

The first intimation that Mr. Barker had of an approaching storm was a small cloud no larger than a man's hand which he discovered moving slowly toward the southwest with a gyratory movement.

From Cordwood by Bill Nye

Related Words

• whirling