as in to curl
to follow a circular or spiral course
a narrow road spiraling up the mountain to the summit
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in winding
turning around an axis like the thread of a screw
a spiral staircase takes visitors up into the Statue of Liberty
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spiral
Ruchi Kumar, NPR, 16 Apr. 2025
Those early days of motherhood were a blur of sleepless nights, constant crying (both hers and mine), and a pervasive feeling that my life had spiraled completely out of control.
—Liz Krieger, Allure, 15 Apr. 2025
Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 19 Mar. 2025
Drooping clusters of yellow-green flowers hang from the tree’s branches in spring, and winged sugar maple seeds spiral to the ground in fall.
—Nina Foster, JSTOR Daily, 28 Mar. 2025
Remy Blumenfeld, HollywoodReporter, 5 Apr. 2025
Finding myself trapped in the plastic surgery corner of TikTok doesn’t help this spiral.
—Brittany Talarico, People.com, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spiral
Verb
Bhutta said the widespread circulation of the virus means the situation could quickly spiral into something much worse.
—Ruchi Kumar, NPR, 16 Apr. 2025
Those early days of motherhood were a blur of sleepless nights, constant crying (both hers and mine), and a pervasive feeling that my life had spiraled completely out of control.
—Liz Krieger, Allure, 15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
This endeavor encouraged the public to participate by determining the shape of the galaxies observed by Euclid, distinguished by telltale features like spiral arms and tidal tails.
—Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 19 Mar. 2025
Drooping clusters of yellow-green flowers hang from the tree’s branches in spring, and winged sugar maple seeds spiral to the ground in fall.
—Nina Foster, JSTOR Daily, 28 Mar. 2025
Noun
What matters is who can survive the narrative spiral.
—Remy Blumenfeld, HollywoodReporter, 5 Apr. 2025
Finding myself trapped in the plastic surgery corner of TikTok doesn’t help this spiral.
—Brittany Talarico, People.com, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spiral
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spiral
Verb
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It’s packed with curling memorabilia and jokey artifacts: pin badges, curling stone statues, a Worst End trophy (complete with protruding horse’s butt), strategy whiteboards, and a sign revealing the Scottish Curler’s Grace.—
Tim Chester,
AFAR Media,
16 Apr. 2025
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On Sunday, April 13, the TikToker posted a video of her applying makeup, having her hair curled and dressing in all black for the funeral, which took place less than one week after Campbell announced Elliana had died.—
Zoey Lyttle,
People.com,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Sedona Prince has had a winding journey toward the 2025 WNBA Draft, where she’s expected to finally join the league in April after a seven-year college odyssey.—
Sabreena Merchant,
New York Times,
27 Mar. 2025
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The entry pathway is suspended over a pool of lotus flowers, followed by a mystical winding road shaded by the canopy (where a chase scene was filmed), and the open-air lobby which overlooks the resort’s statement design piece: a long pool filled with floating lotuses.—
Anna Haines,
Forbes,
12 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Yamamoto snapped off a flurry of big-bending curves, generating four whiffs on 11 swings.—
Jack Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Apr. 2025
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Einstein’s general theory of relativity, which is used to describe the gravity of black holes, uses a single field equation to explain how space curves and matter moves.—
Lyndie Chiou,
Wired News,
20 Apr. 2025
Verb
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How to clean air fryer coils Cleaning the air fryer basket and rack is only part of the job.—
Cody Godwin,
USA Today,
26 Mar. 2025
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Males pour by the thousands from the depths of the limestone caverns, coiling over rocks and one another in a slow-motion frenzy of courtship.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
26 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The brand was recognized for using its knowledge to understand how trash can be used as part of a circular sustainability ecosystem for future automobiles.—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Apr. 2025
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The circular dots found near the center of the fossil indicate that a predatory marine reptile called a mosasaur took some bites of it.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
16 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The curves and whorls of the 3,000-pound bronze monument evoke billowing sails, crashing waves, and, more abstractly, two hands reaching toward each other.—
Alex Hutchinson,
Outside Online,
25 Mar. 2025
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The areas had large pieces of Middle and Late Iron Age pottery, as well as other cooking vessels and a spindle whorl.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
5 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The live performance was shot in a single day as a oner using the 65-pound IMAX camera on a steadicam, which winds its way around the juke in three sections.—
Bill Desowitz,
IndieWire,
20 Apr. 2025
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There are 14 beach bungalows, as well as 128 overwater bungalows—the largest collection in Bora Bora—connected by a winding boardwalk.—
Travel + Leisure Editors,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Nelson’s team can use its magnets to control a helical microrobot with magnetic fields of less than 10 millitesla, a fraction of what’s created in an MRI.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
1 June 2015
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Unlike standard laser beams that propagate straight, vortex beams twist along their axis, creating a helical wavefront with a distinct ‘null intensity’ region at the center.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
18 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spiral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spiral. Accessed 28 Apr. 2025.
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