twist
Americanverb (used with object)
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to combine, as two or more strands or threads, by winding together; intertwine.
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to form by or as if by winding strands together.
Several fibers were used to twist the rope.
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to entwine (one thing) with another; interlace (something) with something else; interweave; plait.
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to wind or coil (something) about something else; encircle; entwine; wreathe.
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to alter in shape, as by turning the ends in opposite directions, so that parts previously in the same straight line and plane are located in a spiral curve.
The sculptor twisted the form into an arabesque. He twisted his body around to look behind him.
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to turn sharply or wrench out of place; sprain.
He twisted his ankle.
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to pull, tear, or break off by turning forcibly.
He twisted the arm off the puppet.
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to distort (the features) by tensing or contracting the facial muscles; contort.
She twisted her face in a wry smile.
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to distort the meaning or form of; pervert.
He twisted my comment about to suit his own purpose.
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to cause to become mentally or emotionally distorted; warp.
The loss of his business twisted his whole outlook on life.
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to form into a coil, knot, or the like by winding, rolling, etc..
to twist the hair into a knot.
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to bend tortuously.
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to cause to move with a rotary motion, as a ball pitched in a curve.
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to turn (something) from one direction to another, as by rotating or revolving.
I twisted my chair to face the window.
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to combine or associate intimately.
verb (used without object)
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to be or become intertwined.
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to wind or twine about something.
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to writhe or squirm.
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to take a spiral form or course; wind, curve, or bend.
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to turn or rotate, as on an axis; revolve, as about something; spin.
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to turn so as to face in another direction.
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to turn, coil, or bend into a spiral shape.
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to change shape under forcible turning or twisting.
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to move with a progressive rotary motion, as a ball pitched in a curve.
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to dance the twist.
noun
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the action of turning or rotating on an axis; rotary motion; spin.
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anything formed by or as if by twisting or twining parts together.
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the act or process of twining strands together, as in thread, yarn, or rope.
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a twisting awry or askew.
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distortion or perversion, as of meaning or form.
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a peculiar attitude or bias; eccentric turn or bent of mind; eccentricity.
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spiral disposition, arrangement, or form.
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spiral movement or course.
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a sudden, unanticipated change of course, as of events.
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a treatment, method, idea, version, etc., especially one differing from that which preceded.
The screenwriters gave the old plot a new twist.
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the changing of the shape of anything by or as by turning the ends in opposite directions.
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the stress causing this alteration; torque.
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the resulting state.
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a twisting or torsional action, force, or stress; torsion.
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a strong, twisted silk thread, heavier than ordinary sewing silk, for working buttonholes and for other purposes.
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the direction of twisting in weaving yarn; S twist or Z twist.
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a loaf or roll of dough twisted and baked.
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a strip of citrus peel that has been twisted and placed in a drink to add flavor.
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a kind of tobacco manufactured in the form of a rope or thick cord.
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a dance performed by couples and characterized by strongly rhythmic turns and twists of the arms, legs, and torso.
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the degree of spiral formed by the grooves in a rifled firearm or cannon.
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Gymnastics, Diving. a full rotation of the body about the vertical axis.
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a wrench.
idioms
verb
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to cause (one end or part) to turn or (of one end or part) to turn in the opposite direction from another; coil or spin
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to distort or be distorted; change in shape
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to wind or cause to wind; twine, coil, or intertwine
to twist flowers into a wreath
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to force or be forced out of the natural form or position
to twist one's ankle
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(usually passive) to change or cause to change for the worse in character, meaning, etc; pervert
his ideas are twisted
she twisted the statement
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to revolve or cause to revolve; rotate
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(tr) to wrench with a turning action
to twist something from someone's grasp
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(intr) to follow a winding course
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(intr) to squirm, as with pain
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(intr) to dance the twist
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informal (tr) to cheat; swindle
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to persuade or coerce someone
noun
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the act or an instance of twisting
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something formed by or as if by twisting
a twist of hair
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a decisive change of direction, aim, meaning, or character
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(in a novel, play, etc) an unexpected event, revelation, or other development
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a bend
a twist in the road
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a distortion of the original or natural shape or form
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a jerky pull, wrench, or turn
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a strange personal characteristic, esp a bad one
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a confused mess, tangle, or knot made by twisting
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a twisted thread used in sewing where extra strength is needed
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(in weaving) a specified direction of twisting the yarn
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a modern dance popular in the 1960s, in which couples vigorously twist the hips in time to rhythmic music
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a bread loaf or roll made of one or more pieces of twisted dough
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a thin sliver of peel from a lemon, lime, etc, twisted and added to a drink
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a cigar made by twisting three cigars around one another
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chewing tobacco made in the form of a roll by twisting the leaves together
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physics torsional deformation or shear stress or strain
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sport spin given to a ball in various games, esp baseball
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the extent to which the grooves in the bore of a rifled firearm are spiralled
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slang mad; eccentric
Synonym Usage
See turn.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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twistabilitynoun
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overtwistverb
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retwistverb
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twistableadjective
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twistedadjective
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twistingadjective
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twistyadjective
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untwistableadjective
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twistinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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twistsimple
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twistssimple
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have twistedperfect
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has twistedperfect
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am twistingprogressive
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are twistingprogressive
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is twistingprogressive
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have been twistingperfect progressive
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has been twistingperfect progressive
Past
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twistedsimple
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had twistedperfect
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was twistingprogressive
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were twistingprogressive
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had been twistingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of twist
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English twisten “to divide,” derivative of twist “divided object, rope” (compare Old English -twist in candel-twist “pair of snuffers”); cognate with Dutch twisten “to quarrel,” German Zwist “a quarrel.” See twi-
Explanation
When you twist something, you turn it in a different direction. You might twist off a bottle cap, or you might even twist the plot of a story you are writing. A kite's tail twists in the wind, curling around itself, and a baker twists a piece of dough into a pretzel shape. You can also twist out of someone's grasp (to escape your godmother's cheek pinching), or twist your ankle hurrying away. As a noun, twist means a bent and curved shape, like the twist of a curl or a twist of soft serve ice cream. In a book or movie plot, a twist is a shocking development.
Vocabulary lists containing twist
"Still I Rise" by Maya Angelou
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Common Five-letter Words for Wordle, List 3
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myPerspectives 6.1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Then, the males wriggle up and twist and wrap around them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
McCullum's exit is the latest twist in the unravelling of the England Test team.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
There was briefly another twist: The Rockies countered with their own challenge, arguing that Rushing had blocked the plate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026
Unlike Einstein's General Relativity, which describes spacetime as something that can bend or curve, Einstein-Cartan theory also allows spacetime to twist.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026
He gave it a twist and the engine sputtered to life.
From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles
The story of how Wrobleski got there includes plenty of twists and turns.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
How to explain all these twists and turns?
From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026
But few could have expected the twists and turns that would follow.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
The process can be compared to cutting a tangled cable to remove twists and then reconnecting it.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 21, 2026
As I look within, I see myself—except I’m wearing a different kind of dashiki, and my hair is picked out rather than in twists.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
A blackened mattress, a twisted bicycle, a crushed sofa and toys protrude between two stacked concrete slabs.
From Barron's ● Jul. 4, 2026
Quansah came off with a twisted ankle in England's 2-0 win over Panama in their final group game on Saturday, with Djed Spence coming on to replace the Bayer Leverkusen defender.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
Videos and photos posted on his official social media showed the president on the cathedral’s roof amid twisted and charred metal and wood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
The Tanner Scott redemption story took a dark, twisted turn Saturday night.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
She twisted around as I pulled the door shut, her mouth parted, ready with questions.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Christian Pulisic came off in the 59th minute after twisting his right ankle — leaving this World Cup without a goal in the four matches he appeared.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026
There’s the grief, seeping into Maxine’s life and twisting itself around the gratitude, tightening its grip.
From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026
On the job, Greenspan was a known abstruse speaker who admitted that his opaque, twisting rhetoric was a purposeful strategy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Researchers at the University of Technology Sydney have demonstrated a new way to control tiny sources of quantum light by twisting atomically thin layers of hexagonal boron nitride.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 20, 2026
“This isn’t how things are supposed to go, you know,” May said softly, twisting the crown around at the end of her necklace.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
