spiral

[spahy-ruh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR spiral ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Geometry. a plane curve generated by a point moving around a fixed point while constantly receding from or approaching it.

a helix.

a single circle or ring of a spiral or helical curve or object.

a spiral or helical object, formation, or form.

Aeronautics. a maneuver in which an airplane descends in a helix of small pitch and large radius, with the angle of attack within that of the normal flight range.

Football. a type of kick or pass in which the ball turns on its longer axis as it flies through the air.

Economics. a continuous increase in costs, wages, prices, etc. (inflationary spiral), or a decrease in costs, wages, prices, etc. (deflationary spiral).

adjective

running continuously around a fixed point or center while constantly receding from or approaching it; coiling in a single plane: a spiral curve.

coiling around a fixed line or axis in a constantly changing series of planes; helical.

of or of the nature of a spire or coil.

bound with a spiral binding; spiral-bound: a spiral notebook.

verb (used without object), spi·raled, spi·ral·ing or (especially British) spi·ralled, spi·ral·ling.

to take a spiral form or course.

to advance or increase steadily; rise: Costs have been spiraling all year.

Aeronautics. to fly an airplane through a spiral course.

verb (used with object), spi·raled, spi·ral·ing or (especially British) spi·ralled, spi·ral·ling.

to cause to take a spiral form or course.

Nearby words

Origin of spiral

1545–55; < Medieval Latin spīrālis, equivalent to Latin spīr(a) coil (< Greek speîra anything coiled, wreathed, or twisted; see spire²) + -ālis -al¹

Related forms

spi·ral·i·ty

[spahy-ral-i-tee] /spaɪˈræl ɪ ti/, nounspi·ral·ly, adverbmul·ti·spi·ral, adjectivenon·spi·ral, adjective, noun

sub·spi·ral, adjectivesub·spi·ral·ly, adverbun·spi·ral, adjectiveun·spi·ral·ly, adverbun·spi·raled, adjectiveun·spi·ralled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for spiralling

The volan was fluttering, spiralling slowly as Georg struggled to hold his place.
Tarrano the Conqueror|Raymond King Cummings
They are swept by it, intoxicated by its perfection, inebriated by the spiralling complexity of its forms.
After the Rain|Sam Vaknin
All these great continental and oceanic systems of spiralling winds are important climatic controls.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 5|Various
Lufbery told us he had seen the whole thing, spiralling down after the German.
Flying for France|James R. McConnell

The Atlantis was spiralling up to her ten-thousand-foot level, and in a moment or two she was nothing more than a speck.
The Air Pirate|Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull

British Dictionary definitions for spiralling

spiral

noun

geometry one of several plane curves formed by a point winding about a fixed point at an ever-increasing distance from it. Polar equation of Archimedes spiral: r = a θ; of logarithmic spiral: log r = a θ; of hyperbolic spiral: r θ = a, (where a is a constant)

another name for helix (def. 1)

something that pursues a winding, usually upward, course or that displays a twisting form or shape

a flight manoeuvre in which an aircraft descends describing a helix of comparatively large radius with the angle of attack within the normal flight rangeCompare spin (def. 16)

economics a continuous upward or downward movement in economic activity or prices, caused by interaction between prices, wages, demand, and production

adjective

having the shape of a spiral

verb -rals, -ralling or -ralled or US -rals, -raling or -raled

to assume or cause to assume a spiral course or shape

(intr) to increase or decrease with steady accelerationwages and prices continue to spiral

Derived Formsspirally, adverb

Word Origin for spiral

C16: via French from Medieval Latin spīrālis, from Latin spīra a coil; see spire ²

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 spiralling

spiral

adj.

1550s, from Middle French spiral, from Medieval Latin spiralis "winding, coiling" (mid-13c.), from Latin spira "coil," from Greek speira "coil, twist, wreath," from PIE *sper- "to turn, twist." Spiral galaxy first attested 1913.

spiral

1726 (implied in spiraled), from spiral (n.). Transferred and figurative sense by 1922. Related: Spiraling.

spiral

1650s, from spiral (adj.). U.S. football sense is from 1896.

Medicine definitions for spiralling

spiral

[spī′rəl]

adj.

Coiling or developing around an axis in a constantly changing series of planes; helical.

n.

A structure in the shape of a coil.

v.

To take the form or course of a spiral.

spiral

noun

adjective

verb (used without object), spi·raled, spi·ral·ing or (especially British) spi·ralled, spi·ral·ling.

verb (used with object), spi·raled, spi·ral·ing or (especially British) spi·ralled, spi·ral·ling.

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Origin of spiral

Examples from the Web for spiralling

spiral

noun

adjective

verb -rals, -ralling or -ralled or US -rals, -raling or -raled

Word Origin for spiral

spiral

spiral

spiral

spiral

adj.

n.

v.