SPIRAL
coiling, helical, spiral, spiraling, volute, voluted, whorled, turbinate
(adjective) in the shape of a coil
spiral
(noun) flying downward in a helical path with a large radius
coil, spiral, volute, whorl, helix
(noun) a structure consisting of something wound in a continuous series of loops; “a coil of rope”
spiral, volute
(noun) ornament consisting of a curve on a plane that winds around a center with an increasing distance from the center
spiral
(noun) a continuously accelerating change in the economy
spiral
(noun) a plane curve traced by a point circling about the center but at increasing distances from the center
helix, spiral
(noun) a curve that lies on the surface of a cylinder or cone and cuts the element at a constant angle
gyrate, spiral, coil
(verb) to wind or move in a spiral course; “the muscles and nerves of his fine drawn body were coiling for action”; “black smoke coiling up into the sky”; “the young people gyrated on the dance floor”
corkscrew, spiral
(verb) move in a spiral or zigzag course
spiral
(verb) form a spiral; “The path spirals up the mountain”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
spiral (plural spirals)
(geometry) A curve that is the locus of a point that rotates about a fixed point while continuously increasing its distance from that point.
(informal) A helix.
A self-sustaining process with a lot of momentum involved, so it is difficult to accelerate or stop it at once.
Adjective
spiral (not comparable)
Helical, like a spiral
Verb
spiral (third-person singular simple present spirals, present participle (UK) spiralling or (US) spiraling, simple past and past participle (UK) spiralled or (US) spiraled)
(intransitive) To move along the path of a spiral or helix.
(transitive) To cause something to spiral.
(figuratively, intransitive) To increase continually.
Anagrams
• Aprils, Plairs, prials
Source: Wiktionary
Spi"ral, a. Etym: [Cf. F. spiral. See Spire a winding line.]
1. Winding or circling round a center or pole and gradually receding
from it; as, the spiral curve of a watch spring.
2. Winding round a cylinder or imaginary axis, and at the same time
rising or advancing forward; winding like the thread of a screw;
helical.
3. (Geom.)
Definition: Of or pertaining to a spiral; like a spiral. Spiral gear, or
Spiral wheel (Mach.), a gear resembling in general a spur gear, but
having its teeth cut at an angle with its axis, or so that they form
small portions of screws or spirals.
– Spiral gearing, a kind of gearing sometimes used in light
machinery, in which spiral gears, instead of bevel gears, are used to
transmit motion between shafts that are not parallel.
– Spiral operculum, an operculum whih has spiral lines of growth.
– Spiral shell, any shell in which the whorls form a spiral or
helix.
– Spiral spring. See the Note under Spring, n., 4.
Spi"ral, n. Etym: [Cf. F. spirale. See Spiral, a.]
1. (Geom.)
Definition: A plane curve, not reëntrant, described by a point, called the
generatrix, moving along a straight line according to a mathematical
law, while the line is revolving about a fixed point called the pole.
Cf. Helix.
2. Anything which has a spiral form, as a spiral shell. Equiangular
spiral,a plane curve which cuts all its generatrices at the same
angle. Same as Logarithmic spiral, under Logarithmic.
– Spiral of Archimedes, a spiral the law of which is that the
generatrix moves uniformly along the revolving line, which also moves
uniformly.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition