pinwheeling

American  

[pin-hwee-ling, -wee-] / ˈpɪnˌʰwi lɪŋ, -ˌwi- /

noun

U.S. Nautical.

1. the act of turning a multiple-screw ship within a minimum radius by having some engines going forward and others going in reverse.

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Etymology

Origin of pinwheeling

pinwheel + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

The Crab Nebula features a neutron star at its center that has formed into a 12-mile-wide pulsar pinwheeling electromagnetic radiation across the cosmos.

From Science Daily • Nov. 18, 2024

The man and his car were pinwheeling down a flooded river before he was lifted to safety by a helicopter.

From BBC • Aug. 1, 2023

San Francisco’s Brett Wisely lost his bat while hitting a third-inning double play, sending it pinwheeling into the Reds dugout, where it disappeared into the opening to the tunnel leading to the clubhouse.

From Washington Times • Jul. 18, 2023

Twice in this dance, we see multiple men pinwheeling multiple women on high, almost like multiple bitter triumphs, as Sinatra sings out to us that “his way” is worth “all the blows.”

From New York Times • Dec. 1, 2022

He wound up, fired, the ball headed for the plate, and — what’s this? — a legball? — it’s got legs — long legs pinwheeling toward the plate.

From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli