gyre
[jahyuh r]
- a ring or circle.
- a circular course or motion.
- Oceanography. a ringlike system of ocean currents rotating clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.
Show More
Origin of gyre
1560–70; < Latin gȳrus < Greek gŷros ring, circle
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for gyre
globe, circus, crown, disk, enclosure, belt, bowl, meridian, horizon, circlet, hoop, aureole, compass, coil, lap, halo, cycle, circumference, band, braceletExamples from the Web for gyre
Contemporary Examples of gyre
Yet with the tsunami debris joining the gyre, the problem is compounding more quickly than anyone can measure.
Historical Examples of gyre
Gyre (derived from Gayour or Giaour, a dog), “to scratch like a dog.”
Lewis Carroll in Wonderland and at HomeBelle Moses
Dorsally, the fissure bifurcates, embracing the gyre indented by the caudal limb of the paracentral.
Christian ScienceMark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
gyre
- a circular or spiral movement or path
- a ring, circle, or spiral
Show More
- (intr) to whirl
Show More
Word Origin for gyre
C16: from Latin gӯrus circle, from Greek guros
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
Word Origin and History for gyre
1560s, "a circular motion;" as a verb, "to turn round," early 15c.; from Latin gyrus "circle, circular course, round, ring," and its derived verb gyrare, from Greek gyros "circle, ring," related to gyrós "rounded," perhaps from PIE root *geu- "to bend, curve" (cf. Armenian kor "crooked," Lithuanian gurnas "hip, ankle, bone," Norwegian kaure "a curly lock of hair").
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
gyre
[jīr]
- A spiral oceanic surface current driven primarily by the global wind system and constrained by the continents surrounding the three ocean basins (Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian). Each ocean basin has a large gyre in the subtropical region, centered around 30° north and south latitude. Smaller gyres occur at 50° north latitude in the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The direction of a gyre's rotation is determined by the prevailing winds in the region, with the large subtropical gyres rotating clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.
Show More
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.