noun
- A plane curve traced by a point circling about the center but at increasing distances from the center.
- A curve that lies on the surface of a cylinder or cone and cuts the element at a constant angle.
- synonyms: helix
- A continuously accelerating change in the economy.
- Ornament consisting of a curve on a plane that winds around a center with an increasing distance from the center.
- synonyms: volute
- A structure consisting of something wound in a continuous series of loops.
- usage: "a coil of rope"
- Flying downward in a helical path with a large radius.
verb
- To wind or move in a spiral course.
- usage: "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"
- Form a spiral.
- usage: "The path spirals up the mountain"
- Move in a spiral or zigzag course.
- synonyms: corkscrew
adjective
WordNet 3.0 © 2006 by Princeton University
| APA | WordNet. (2010). Spiral. Retrieved September 20, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/spiral/definitions/1184145 |
| Chicago | WordNet. 2010. "Spiral" http://smartdefine.org/spiral/definitions/1184145 (accessed September 20, 2026). |
| Harvard | WordNet 2010, Spiral, Smart Define, viewed 20 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/spiral/definitions/1184145>. |
| MLA | WordNet. "Spiral" 23 October 2010. Web. 20 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/spiral/definitions/1184145> |