spindle

American  

[spin-dl] / ˈspɪn dl /

noun

spindles plural

1. a rounded rod, usually of wood, tapering toward each end, used in hand-spinning to twist into thread the fibers drawn from the mass on the distaff, and on which the thread is wound as it is spun.

2. the rod on a spinning wheel by which the thread is twisted and on which it is wound.

3. one of the rods of a spinning machine that bear the bobbins on which the spun thread is wound.

4. any rod or pin suggestive of a spindle used in spinning, as one that turns around or on which something turns; an axle, axis, or shaft.

5. a vertical shaft that serves to center a phonograph record on a turntable.

6. either of two shafts or arbors that support the work on a lathe, one live spindle on the headstock, rotating with and imparting motion to the work, the other dead spindle on the tailstock, motionless.

7. a small axis, arbor, or mandrel.

8. an iron rod or the like, usually with a ball or cage at the top, fixed to a rock, sunken reef, etc., to serve as a guide in navigation.

9. a measure of yarn, containing, for cotton, 15,120 yards (13,825 meters), and for linen, 14,400 yards (13,267 meters).

10. a hydrometer.

11. Cell Biology. a spindle-shaped structure, composed of microtubules, that forms near the cell nucleus during mitosis or meiosis and, as it divides, draws the chromosomes to opposite poles of the cell.

12. a short, turned or circular ornament, as in a baluster or stair rail.

13. spindle file.

14. Eastern New England. a tassel on an ear of corn.

15. Chiefly New Jersey and Delaware Valley. dragonfly.

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adjective

1. spindle side.

verb (used with object)

spindles, present (3rd person singular) spindled, past participle, past spindling present participle

1. to give the form of a spindle to.

2. to provide or equip with a spindle or spindles.

3. to impale (a card or paper) on a spindle, as for sorting purposes.

verb (used without object)

spindles, present (3rd person singular) spindled, past participle, past spindling present participle

1. to shoot up, or grow, into a long, slender stalk or stem, as a plant.

2. to grow tall and slender, often disproportionately so.

spindle British  

/ ˈspɪndəl /

noun

1. a rod or stick that has a notch in the top, used to draw out natural fibres for spinning into thread, and a long narrow body around which the thread is wound when spun

2. one of the thin rods or pins bearing bobbins upon which spun thread is wound in a spinning wheel or machine

3. any of various parts in the form of a rod, esp a rotating rod that acts as an axle, mandrel, or arbor

4. a piece of wood that has been turned, such as a baluster or table leg

5. a small square metal shaft that passes through the lock of a door and to which the door knobs or handles are fixed

6. a measure of length of yarn equal to 18 hanks (15 120 yards) for cotton or 14 400 yards for linen

7. biology a spindle-shaped structure formed by microtubules during mitosis or meiosis which draws the duplicated chromosomes apart as the cell divides

8. a less common name for a hydrometer

9. a tall pole with a marker at the top, fixed to an underwater obstruction as an aid to navigation

10. a device consisting of a sharp upright spike on a pedestal on which bills, order forms, etc, are impaled

11. short for spindle tree

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verb

1. (tr) to form into a spindle or equip with spindles

2. rare (intr) (of a plant, stem, shoot, etc) to grow rapidly and become elongated and thin

spindle Scientific  

/ spĭn′dl /

1. A network of protein fibers that forms in the cytoplasm of a cell during cell division. The spindle grows forth from the centrosomes and attaches to the chromosomes after the latter have been duplicated, and the nuclear membrane dissolves. Once attached, the spindle fibers contract, pulling the duplicate chromosomes apart to opposite poles of the dividing cell.

2. See more at meiosis mitosis

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Regionalisms

See dragonfly.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• multispindled
  adjective
• spindlelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• spindles
  plural

Participles

• spindling
  present
• spindled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• spindle
  simple
• spindles
  simple
• have spindled
  perfect
• has spindled
  perfect
• am spindling
  progressive
• are spindling
  progressive
• is spindling
  progressive
• have been spindling
  perfect progressive
• has been spindling
  perfect progressive

Past

• spindled
  simple
• had spindled
  perfect
• was spindling
  progressive
• were spindling
  progressive
• had been spindling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will spindle
  simple
• will have spindled
  perfect
• will be spindling
  progressive
• will have been spindling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of spindle

before 900; Middle English spindel (noun), Old English spin ( e ) l; see spin, -le; cognate with German Spindel

Explanation

A spindle is a narrow wooden rod that's used when spinning wool. If your aunt has a spinning wheel for making yarn from the wool of her sheep, it must have a spindle on it for twisting the fibers. The noun spindle can be used to talk about a number of different forms of wooden rod or dowel, particularly if they turn or spin. A yarn spinner's spindle is one kind — another is a chair leg or a banister rail that was made from being turned on a lathe. In fact, spindle and spin share a common root word, the Old English spinnan, "draw out and twist fibers into a thread."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

spindle spindles spindled spindling

From re-creating each staircase spindle to replicating 19th-century windows, a relocated Queen Anne gets a family-friendly update that honors its past.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 20, 2026

Ellie Knot, of Devon Biodiversity Records Centre, said there were eight species of ermine moth, so it was hard to tell if these were spindle ermine.

From BBC ● May 13, 2026

Words become a texture of stasis, as when “winding” and “whirring” are repeated multiple times to describe Thorn Rose’s climb to the turret where she finds the fatal spindle.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

Previously believed to consist of a compact structure attaching to multiple spindle microtubules, it was instead revealed that the centromere consists of two subdomains.

From Science Daily ● May 13, 2024

Jars, baskets, pots; a doll, a spindle, earrings, a photograph, a stack of sticks, a set of silver brushes and a silver cigar case.

From "Jazz" by Toni Morrison

"Also, prolonged vibration changes the reactivity of the neuromuscular spindles and alters the signal sent to the brain."

From Science Daily ● Jan. 8, 2026

Only about a yard of this is visible; the rest is wound on horizontal spindles.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 5, 2026

Stage two also includes unique brain activity, called spindles and K-complexes, which are short bursts of activity responsible for processing outside stimuli, as well as for consolidating memory.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 13, 2023

Muller and his colleagues found that rotating wave patterns called spindles that occur during non-REM sleep – when our brains, breathing and heart rate slow – could enable plasticity required for storing memories during sleep.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2023

Above their bent heads, huge spindles pound steam- powered fists.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Matted in dead leaves, it wound past snatches of green fern that spindled down the hillsides.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 26, 2022

The illusions in two-dimensional imagery are contradicted by flat surfaces that he’s folded, spindled and otherwise mutilated.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2018

This enterprise came about prior to Purdue being juridically spindled into creating an abuse proof reformulation.

From Salon ● Dec. 30, 2015

Edwin Jackson folded, spindled and mutilated his former team in the 's home opener — an impressive feat even if those Rays are 0-6 with a .146 team batting average.

From Chicago Tribune ● Apr. 7, 2011

And beyond this he came to a many-coloured little street out of Bagdad, overhung with gay balconies, vivacious with spindled towers and minarets, and small reticent windows, out of which veiled ladies would glance.

From Merton of the Movies by Wilson, Harry Leon

Dior’s saddle bags, spindling stiletto heels, Tiffany & Co.’s heart-shaped charm bracelets — all visual elements of Paris Hilton’s “rich bitch” phenomenon — heralded a trend for brazen excess.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 29, 2017

Take private classes in felting, drop spindling, rug hooking, natural dyeing and basic weaving.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2015

At the other end of the field stood a pair of spindling spruces.

From Time Magazine Archive

Such spindling of the Kennelly-Heaviside Layer requires a logical mechanics.

From Time Magazine Archive

A spindling, overgrown boy rose fumbling at his throat.

From Mountain Blood A Novel by Hergesheimer, Joseph