spiraln.
/ˈspʌɪərəl/ 1. Geometry. A continuous curve traced by a point moving round a fixed point in the same plane while steadily increasing (or diminishing) its distance from this. spiral of Archimedes, a curve traced by a point moving uniformly along a line which at the same time revolves uniformly round a fixed point in itself. equiangular spiral, hyperbolic spiral, logarithmic spiral, loxodromic spiral, parabolic spiral: see these words.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun] > a spiral
worm line1551
spire1611
spiral1656
the world > relative properties > number > geometry > curve > [noun] > spiral
spiral1656
helicoid parabola1704
logistic spiral-
1656 tr. T. Hobbes Elements Philos. iii. xvii. 194 The description of Archimedes his Spiral, which is done by the continual diminution of the Semidiameter of a Circle in the same proportion in which the Circumference is diminished.
1697 J. Dryden Ded. Georgics in tr. Virgil Wks. sig. ¶1v At that time the Diurnal Motion of the Sun partakes more of a Right Line, than of a Spiral.
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) Then will the Points M m, m, &c. be Points in the Spiral, which connected, will give the Spiral itself.
1816 C. Babbage tr. S. F. Lacroix Elem. Treat. Differential & Integral Calculus i. 128 The spirals compose another class of transcendental curves.
1869 W. J. M. Rankine Cycl. Machine & Hand-tools 54 Each point in the secondary piece..describes a plane spiral about the fixed axis.
1882 G. M. Minchin Uniplanar Kinematics 50 Prove that the Space Centrode is a parabola and the Body Centrode a spiral of Archimedes.
2.
a. A curve traced by a point moving round, and simultaneously advancing along, a cylinder or cone; a helix or screw-line.The spiral has sometimes been distinguished from the helix: see quot. 1728.
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the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun] > a spiral > helix
helix1643
spiral1670
1670 J. Collins Let. in S. P. Rigaud & S. J. Rigaud Corr. Sci. Men 17th Cent. (1841) (modernized text) I. 147 The spiral described by the compound motion of a heavy body falling to the centre of the earth.
1681 Table of Hard Words in S. Pordage tr. T. Willis Remaining Med. Wks. Spiral, a turning about, and as it were ascending.
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. Spiral, in Architecture, Sculpture, &c. is a Curve that ascends, winding about a Cone..: By this it is distinguished from the Helix, which winds after the same Manner, around a Cylinder.
1788 New London Mag. 44 The length of the Spiral described by the fly in passing from one pole to the other.
1835 M. Somerville On Connexion Physical Sci. (ed. 2) xvii. 172 By thus tracing these nodal lines he discovered that they twist in a spiral or corkscrew round rods and cylinders.
1876 G. E. Voyle & G. de Saint-Clair-Stevenson Mil. Dict. (ed. 3) 198/2 Increasing Spiral, a term applied to the twist or the spiral inclination of the grooves of rifled arms.
b. The degree in which the successive circles of such a curve approach each other.
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the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun] > a spiral > spiral conformation or character > degree of
spiral1846
1846 W. Greener Sci. Gunnery (new ed.) 348 From the peculiar nature of the powder..the extreme spiral given to their grooves was required.
1864 Daily Tel. 1 Aug. Making the arm shoot well, is simply matter of detail, involving considerations of length of barrel, character and spiral of rifling.
c. American Football. A kick or pass in which the ball in flight spins round its long axis.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > American football > [noun] > actions or manoeuvres
rush1857
punt-out1861
goal-kicking1871
safety1879
safety touchdown1879
scrimmage1880
rushing1882
safety touch1884
touchback1884
forward pass1890
run1890
blocking1891
signal1891
fake1893
onside kick1895
tandem-play1895
pass play1896
spiral1896
shift1901
end run1902
straight-arm1903
quarterback sneak1904
runback1905
roughing1906
Minnesota shift1910
quarterbacking1910
snap-back1910
pickoff1912
punt return1914
screen forward pass1915
screen pass1920
power play1921
sneak1921
passback1922
snap1922
defence1923
reverse1924
carry1927
lateral1927
stiff-arm1927
zone1927
zone defence1927
submarine charge1928
squib1929
block1931
pass rushing1933
safetying1933
trap play1933
end-around1934
straight-arming1934
trap1935
mousetrap1936
buttonhook1938
blitzing1940
hand-off1940
pitchout1946
slant1947
strike1947
draw play1948
shovel pass1948
bootleg1949
option1950
red dog1950
red-dogging1951
rollout1951
submarine1952
sleeper pass1954
draw1956
bomb1960
swing pass1960
pass rush1962
blitz1963
spearing1964
onsides kick1965
takeaway1967
quarterback sack1968
smash-mouth1968
veer1968
turn-over1969
bump-and-run1970
scramble1971
sack1972
nose tackle1975
nickel1979
pressure1981
1896 W. Camp & L. F. Deland Football vi. 61 Spiral, a kick similar to the twister, in which the ball maintains a true course while revolving on its long axis.
1910 W. Camp Bk. of Foot-ball viii. 308 Long passes are best made by holding the ball like a spear and sending a spiral.
1920 W. Camp Football without Coach 85 Forward passes are of two kinds, the lob pass and the spiral... The spiral is thrown like a spear and goes more nearly on a line.
1972 J. Mosedale Football v. 69 Fourteen times his soft spirals connected, for 216 yards.
d. figurative. A progressive movement in one direction (esp. upwards or downwards, and marking a relentlessly deteriorating state of affairs), considered to take the form of a spiral; spec. one caused by the interaction or alternate overtaking of interdependent quantities; vicious spiral: see vicious adj. 9.
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the world > relative properties > quantity > decrease or reduction in quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > progressive
spiral1897
the world > relative properties > quantity > increase in quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > progressive increase
mo and moOE
crescendo1785
spiral1931
escalation1938
spiralling1944
snowballing1966
1897 P. Geddes Let. 10 Feb. in P. Boardman Worlds of P. Geddes (1978) vi. 155 New money = new crime = new report..= new police and so on, in downward spiral.
1931 Economist 12 Dec. 1118/1 Progressive depreciation of sterling..would..make the beginning of an all-round inflationary spiral a certainty.
1939 Economist 16 Dec. 405 The fear of an accelerating spiral of wages and prices.
1958 Spectator 15 Aug. 211/1 Steps to avoid a new arms race spiral.
1965 Listener 23 Sept. 439/2 We have got to get rid of the endless spiral, price increases and pay claims.
1975 Physics Bull. Aug. 345/1 The tendency for departments with the highest demand for undergraduate places to take the largest slice of the UGC cake has meant that engineering and physical science departments have fallen into a spiral of fewer students resulting in lower grants.
1980 Times 15 Jan. 14 Price of antique silver follows the gold spiral.
e. Aeronautics. A descent (or, rarely, a climb) made by an aircraft in the form of a helix; a continuous banking turn accompanying a descent or ascent.
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society > travel > air or space travel > specific movements or positions of aircraft > [noun] > spiral
spiral1910
death spiral1912
1910 Sphere 30 July 103/2 This descent..was composed of several high-speed dives and short spirals.
1913 Aeroplane 27 Mar. 374/2 Engine not pulling well, but pilot did usual fine spirals.
1918 E. M. Roberts Flying Fighter 272 When I came out of my spiral,..my engine would not start again.
1918 E. M. Roberts Flying Fighter 301 The Hun machine started upward in a spiral.
1941 F. Pope & A. S. Otis Elements Aeronaut. ix. 85 The spiral, usually done with power off, is merely a gliding turn, continued to make several complete turns, gradually descending.
1975 G. H. Saunders Dynamics of Helicopter Flight v. 178 A neutrally stable spiral would require the pilot to take back out his cyclic input once his desired bank angle has been achieved.
3.
a. A piece of wire coiled into a spiral form.
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1825 Ann. Philos. New Ser. 10 52 After which the extremity of the spiral being tied hard,..I put the covered wire in a vice.
1881 J. Hatton New Ceylon vi. 154 Men and women alike wear the neck spiral, and the former also a closely~fitting spiral around their biceps.
1885 C. G. W. Lock Workshop Receipts 4th Ser. 298/2 The spirals of the key-board must be bent their right shape.
b. Botany. A spiral vessel in plants.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > cell or aggregate tissue > [noun] > tissue > vessel(s)
vesicle1670
vessel1672
air vessel1673
tubule1677
vesicula1705
absorbent1734
follicle1760
vital vessels1832
spiral1837
vas1843
vacuole1853
cyst1866
1837 P. Keith Bot. Lexicon 241 According to Raspail it is composed of cells, tubes, and spirals yet visible.
1837 P. Keith Bot. Lexicon 288 They have neither stomata nor spirals: hence they can neither form the green chromule, nor exhale moisture.
c. Astronomy. A spiral nebula.
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the world > the universe > constellation > nebula > [noun]
nebula1718
nubecula1719
nebule1830
spiral1850
the world > the universe > constellation > galaxy > [noun] > spiral galaxy
spiral1850
spiral nebula1850
spiral galaxy1913
1850 Ld. Rosse in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 140 511 Night excellent, a spiral seen in an oblique direction, resolved well, particularly towards the centre, where it is very bright.
1866 W. Lockyer & J. N. Lockyer tr. A. Guillemin Heavens 400 Brilliant spirals, unequally luminous,..diverge from the centre, and become separated..as they recede from it.
1881 G. F. Chambers Smyth's Cycle Celestial Objects (ed. 2) 38 One of Lord Rosse's ‘spirals’.
d. In general use: Any object having a spiral form.
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the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun] > a spiral > spiral or helical object
screw1615
helicoid1699
volute1756
spiral1853
1853 G. P. R. James Agnes Sorel I. i. 19 The staircase was merely one of those narrow, twisting spirals.
1858 D. Lardner Hand-bk. Nat. Philos.: Hydrostatics, Pneumatics, & Heat (new ed.) 119 In practice, the spiral through which the water is carried is not in the form of a tube.
1883 Harper's Mag. Aug. 375/2 Misfortune awaits the boat that ventures into this watery spiral.
1890 J. Cagney tr. R. von Jaksch Clin. Diagnosis iv. 70 The spirals are often overlaid with epithelium.
4. One of the separate circles or coils of a spiral or helical object. Cf. spire n.3 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun] > a spiral > a single coil in a spiral or helix
splint1607
wreath1634
spiral1728
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [noun] > a spiral > spiral or helical object > specifically of wire
spiral1825
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Screw The Velocity of the Weight..will be to the Velocity of the Power, as is the said Distance between the Spirals to the Compass described by the Power, in one Revolution or turning round of the Screw.
?1790 J. Imison School of Arts (ed. 2) 23 Supposing the distance of the spirals to be half an inch.
1825 ‘J. Nicholson’ Operative Mechanic 240 If, there~fore, a pipe of uniform bore be wrapped round a conic frustrum,..the spirals will be very nearly such as will answer the purpose.
1891 R. Kipling Light that Failed xv. 319 He stroked the creaseless spirals of his leggings.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online September 2021).
spiraladj.1adv.
/ˈspʌɪərəl/ 1. Forming a succession of curves arranged like the thread of a screw; coiled in a cylindrical or conical manner; helical:figurative.1862 J. L. Motley Let. 26 Feb. in Corr. (1889) II. iii. 65 It seems to be a law of Providence that progress should be by a spiral movement.
a. In general use.
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the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [adjective] > spiral or helical > helical
spiral1556
whelkeda1560
screwish1570
helical1613
screwed1615
cochleary1646
cochleous1694
helicoid1704
cochleateda1728
cochleate1835
helicoidal1864
1556 R. Record Castle of Knowl. 249 In going betweene the firste degree of Capricorne, and the fyrste of Cancer, he..maketh aboue 182 reuolutions lyke spirall circles.
1668 Bp. J. Wilkins Ess. Real Char. 129 [Shells] more short in the spiral production, considerable for having a Purple juice.
1692 R. Bentley Boyle Lect. v. 17 The Spiral, and not Annulary, Fibres of the Intestines.
1712 J. Browne tr. P. Pomet et al. Compl. Hist. Druggs I. 38 Little, thin, black Seeds, each one having a spiral head.
1781 W. Cowper Retirem. 231 As woodbine..In spiral rings ascends the trunk.
1805 R. Southey Madoc ii. x. 281 Then louder from the spiral sea-shell's depth Swelled the full roar.
1825 ‘J. Nicholson’ Operative Mechanic 246 The spiral tubes in that axle take up the water.
a1878 G. G. Scott Lect. Mediæval Archit. (1879) II. 125 The intermediate pier is a round column,..with spiral flutings.
b. Of an ascending or descending course or path. See also spiral stair n. at Compounds 3a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > movement in circle or curve > [adjective] > of course: ascending or descending in a spiral
spiral1794
society > travel > air or space travel > specific movements or positions of aircraft > [adjective] > spiral (of ascent or dive)
spiral1908
1794 R. J. Sulivan View of Nature II. 46 Local lower heat, and proportionate superior cold, causes the rarefaction, which gives the spiral ascent.
1825 H. W. Longfellow Sunrise on Hills 18 Where upward..The noisy bittern wheeled his spiral way.
1841 Penny Cycl. XXI. 173/2 An almost circular mountain of considerable height, which is ascended by a spiral road.
1876 T. Hardy Hand of Ethelberta II. xxxvi. 98 They paced the remainder of their spiral pathway in silence.
1908 F. W. Lanchester Aerodonetics vii. 180 The aerodrone..loses its equilibrium and comes rapidly to earth with a kind of spiral dive.
1912 Flight 31 Aug. 787/1 The machine at once started a spiral nose-dive.
1939 Aircraft Engin. XI. 40/3 There are many references to spiral or corkscrew descent in the literature..but this always implies a fully controllable motion at an angle of incidence below the critical angle; very different to the spin proper.
1961 C. B. Smith Testing Time 53 To their horror, the men on the ground saw the aircraft drop out of control into a whirling dive, the ‘spiral dive’ which they knew meant almost certain death.
c. With abstract nouns.
ΚΠ
1829 T. Castle Introd. Systematical & Physiol. Bot. 234 Losing the spiral character.
1831 J. Sinclair Corr. II. 264 They have..a species of the pigeon, which fly in a spiral or circular manner, upon one wing.
1860 R. W. Emerson Beauty in Conduct of Life (London ed.) 247 The spiral tendency of vegetation infects education also.
1880 C. E. Bessey Bot. 29 Good examples of ringed, spiral, and reticulated thickening.
d. Surgery. Of a fracture: curving round a long bone lengthwise.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > diseases of tissue > disorders of bones > [adjective] > fractures
brokena1400
bursted1527
comminuted1790
camerated1801
greenstick1850
impacted1850
spiral1897
busted1929
1897 Lippincott's Med. Dict. 955/2 Spiral fracture.
1934 Practitioners Library Med. & Surg. V. ii. 301 Fractures of the Shaft of the Femur... Nonunion may occur... This is likely to happen in the oblique or spiral types.
1950 Brit. Encycl. Med. Pract. IV. 369 (caption) Spiral fracture of tibia in boy aged 8 years, three weeks after accident; no clinical signs or symptoms except his refusal to use his leg.
1976 M. Machlin Pipeline xlii. 455 At the Medical Center Hospitals in Houston they had told him that the spiral break would take at least six months to heal to the point where the cast could be removed.
2. Curving continuously round a fixed point in the same plane at a steadily increasing (or diminishing) distance from it.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [adjective] > spiral or helical > spiral
spirala1639
gyrous1688
planorbiform1856
planorboid1856
pinwheel1887
the world > space > direction > [adjective] > bending or winding
winding1555
straying1585
crankling1596
meandrian1608
tortive1609
meandered1612
serpentine1615
snailing1615
meandering1617
meandrous1639
meandric1658
wandering1667
wimpling1721
spiral1796
circumvolutory1834
wormy1869
twistering1872
twistified1872
twistical1890
a1639 H. Wotton Reliquiæ Wottonianæ (1651) 231 The Capitall..in a spirall wreathing, which they call the Ionian Voluta.
1656 tr. T. Hobbes Elements Philos. iii. xvii. 194 That space in the Circle..without the Spiral Line.
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) The curve..is called a Spiral Line, and the plain Space contained between the Spiral Line, and the Right Line BA, is called the Spiral Space.
1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 562 They are disposed in the direction of a spiral line winding from East to West.
1833 C. Bell Hand (1834) 204 Wherever the sense of feeling is most exquisite, there are minute spiral ridges of cuticle.
1870 F. R. Wilson Archit. Surv. Churches Lindisfarne 90 Among some bold spiral curves..a hound-like quadruped is represented.
1895 W. M. Macpherson Ch. & Priory Monymusk I. 4 The tracings of the characteristic spiral ornaments..are still visible.
3.
a. Botany in spiral cell, spiral thickening, spiral tube, spiral vessel.
ΚΠ
1832 J. Lindley Introd. Bot. 17 Spiral vessels..are membranous tubes with conical extremities; their inside being occupied by a fibre twisted spirally.
1837 P. Keith Bot. Lexicon 10 A revival of Grew's first opinion with regard to the function of the spiral tubes.
1861 R. Bentley Man. Bot. i. i. 15 In some cells the fibre forms an uninterrupted spiral from one end to the other..: such are termed spiral cells.
1884 F. O. Bower & D. H. Scott tr. H. A. de Bary Compar. Anat. Phanerogams & Ferns 157 This is the case in the closely-wound spiral tubes, which show transitional forms to the reticulate.
1933 Trop. Woods XXXVI. 4 Spiral Thickenings.—Helical ridges on the inner face of, and a part of, the secondary wall.
1953 K. Esau Plant Anat. xi. 228 Such secondary thickenings [of the xylem] are called, respectively, annular, spiral or helical, and reticulate.
b. Zoology in specific names (see quots.). Also spiral cleavage, a pattern of embryogenesis characteristic of certain invertebrate groups, in which the third cell division is asymmetrical and destroys all but four-fold rotational symmetry.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > biological processes > procreation or reproduction > embryo or fetus > embryo development processes > [noun]
fetalization1819
segmentation1851
maceration1873
neurulation1878
blastulation1889
concrescence1890
cell lineage1892
myelination1892
spiral cleavage1892
medullation1893
myelinization1900
myelogenesis1901
induction1928
myelinogenesis1931
horizon1942
1802 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. III. ii. 564 Spiral Hydrus... Yellowish Hydrus with..spirally contorted body.
1861 P. P. Carpenter in Rep. Smithsonian Inst. 1860 244 Family Limacinidæ. (Spiral Pteropods.)
1892 E. B. Wilson in Jrnl. Morphol. 6 377 The events of the cleavage fall into three very marked periods which I shall designate respectively as the (1) spiral, (2) transitional, and (3) bilateral periods.
1892 E. B. Wilson in Jrnl. Morphol. 6 441 The third spiral cleavage of the primary micromeres gives rise to four apical cells.
1948 New Biol. 5 113 The same fundamental pattern (called spiral cleavage because of the oblique direction of many of the divisions; the actual pattern of cells resulting is not a spiral) is found also in other groups, such as the flatworms.
1967 L. A. Borradaile et al. Invertebrata i. 2 The annelid superphylum has eggs that develop by means of spiral cleavage. When the blastula divides from the four-cell stage to the eight-cell stage the second quartet lie on top of and between the cells of the first quartet.
c. In attributive combinations (see quots.).
ΚΠ
1846 J. Joyce Sci. Dialogues viii. 18 By means of one of those steel spiral-spring instruments..the fact might be ascertained.
1862 Catal. Internat. Exhib., Brit. II. No. 3500 Patent spiral-spring trusses.
1875 E. H. Knight Amer. Mech. Dict. III. 2276/2 Spiral-vane Steam-engine.
a1884 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Suppl. 842/1 Spiral Tube Boiler.
4. As adv. = spirally adv.1
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [adverb] > spirally
spirally1583
round1611
spiral1726
gyrally1750
twistiways1903
twistiwise1907
1726 G. Leoni tr. L. B. Alberti Architecture II. 36/1 Those chanels that run spiral about the shaft.
a1884 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Suppl. 842/1 Plates laid together with something to maintain their distance and then rolled together spiral.
5. = spiral-bound adj. at Compounds 3b above.
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society > communication > book > manufacture or production of books > book-binding > type of binding > [adjective]
full-bound1705
super-extra1774
half-bound1775
Etruscan1792
antique1794
Russia-bound1808
vellum-bound1836
vellum-covered1836
quarter-bound1842
cloth-bound1860
limp1863
cottage1874
monastic1880
parchment-bound1881
yapped1882
all along1888
Grolieresque1889
Maioli1890
perfect1890
treed calf1892
Lyonnais1893
hardback1894
dos-à-dos1952
perfect bound1960
spiral-bound1961
spiral1977
1977 H. Greene FSO-1 ix. 83 [He] whipped out large black reading glasses, and peered downward at a spiral pad.
1978 R. Thomas Chinaman's Chance xiii. 135 Durant was seated on the couch..a secretary's spiral notebook in his lap.
Compounds
C1. Astronomy. Special collocations in sense 2.
spiral arm n. an arm of a spiral galaxy.
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the world > the universe > constellation > galaxy > [noun] > spiral galaxy > arm of
spiral arm1914
1914 A. S. Eddington Stellar Movements xi. 243 The star clouds of the Milky Way form its [sc. our galaxy's] spiral arms.
1978 J. M. Pasachoff & M. L. Kutner University Astron. xxiii. 582 The interstellar extinction prevents us from studying parts of the spiral arms farther away from the sun.
spiral galaxy n. a galaxy in which bright stars and gas clouds tend to be located along arms that appear to spiral from a central nucleus.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > constellation > galaxy > [noun] > spiral galaxy
spiral1850
spiral nebula1850
spiral galaxy1913
1913 Astrophysical Jrnl. 37 112 The stellar accumulations might be arranged so as to produce the phenomenon of the Milky Way—on the supposition of a spiral galaxy.
1944 H. Shapley Galaxies i. 26 The subclassifications of bright spheroidal and spiral galaxies..are possible only for those systems near enough for large-scale photography.
1980 Sky & Telescope July 25 By studying star formation in spiral galaxies, we can do more than test theories of spiral structure.
spiral nebula n. a spiral galaxy (now chiefly Historical).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > constellation > galaxy > [noun] > spiral galaxy
spiral1850
spiral nebula1850
spiral galaxy1913
1850 Ld. Rosse in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 140 505 The other spiral nebulæ discovered up to the present time are comparatively difficult to be seen.
1920 A. S. Eddington Space, Time & Gravitation x. 160 The most remote objects known are the spiral nebulae, whose distances may perhaps be of the order a million light years.
1978 J. M. Pasachoff & M. L. Kutner University Astron. xxiii. 572 Another class of objects was once known as ‘spiral nebulae’... However, these spiral nebulae are now known to be galaxies in their own right.
C2. spiral-coated, spiral-grooved, spiral-horned, spiral-pointed adjs.; spiral-wise adv.
ΚΠ
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Screw The Screw is a right Cylinder..furrow'd Spiral-wise.
1807 J. E. Smith Introd. Physiol. & Systematical Bot. 200 The sap must soon flow out of those spiral-coated tubes.
1827 G. Higgins Celtic Druids xlvi A low spiral-pointed roof of stone.
1864 Athenæum 5 Mar. 342/2 Mr. Cuming also exhibited two [pins],..the heads of which are spiral-wise.
a1884 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Suppl. 842/1 The spiral grooved guide is a wrought-iron tube.
1894 R. Lydekker Royal Nat. Hist. II. 250 The Himalayan markhor..or spiral-horned goat.
C3. In various special collocations (chiefly in sense 1). spiral auger, spiral battery, spiral punch, spiral screw, etc., are described by E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. (1875–84).
a.
spiral bit n.
ΚΠ
1876 G. E. Voyle & G. de Saint-Clair-Stevenson Mil. Dict. (ed. 3) 40/2 Spiral Bit, a gun implement used for clearing the vents of ordnance when choked.
spiral cam n.
ΚΠ
1855 J. Ogilvie Suppl. Imperial Dict. Spiral Cam,..the solid cam.., when the ridge is formed spirally on the cone.
spiral pump n.
ΚΠ
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Screw Archimedes's Screw, or the Spiral Pump, a Machine for the Raising of Water.
1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 120 If we wind a pipe round a cylinder, of which the axis is horizontal, and connect one end with a vertical tube, while the other..is at liberty to turn round.., the machine is called a spiral pump.
a1884 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. Suppl. 842/1 Spiral Pump, a pump that raises its water by a spiral flange or screw, on the principle of the Archimedean screw.
spiral spring n.
ΚΠ
1690 J. Locke Ess. Humane Understanding iii. vi. 223 Some [watches] have the Balance loose, and others regulated by a spiral Spring.
1869 W. J. M. Rankine Cycl. Machine & Hand-tools Pl.H 9 The projecting piece, a, is kept up to the slide, b,..by means of the spiral spring and die, h.
spiral stair n.
ΚΠ
1624 H. Wotton Elements Archit. in Reliquiæ Wottonianæ (1672) 37 Spiral, or Cockle Stairs.
1728 E. Chambers Cycl. at Stairs Of winding Stairs, call'd also Spiral or cockle Stairs, some are Square, some Circular, or some Elliptical.
1839 W. Chambers Tour Holland 40/1 We were conducted by a spiral stair to the higher part of the tower.
spiral staircase n.
ΚΠ
1757 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. II. 320 This column, with its spiral stair-case,..was restored to its former beauty by pope Sixtus V.
1840 D. Lardner Treat. Geom. 245 Such a spiral surface is the form of spiral staircases, sometimes called geometrical staircases.
spiral wheel n.
ΚΠ
1850 J. Ogilvie Imperial Dict. Spiral-Wheels, in mill work, a species of gearing much used in the textile manufactures.
spiral worm n.
ΚΠ
1883 W. S. Gresley Gloss. Terms Coal Mining 231 Spiral worm, a tool for extricating broken boring rods.
b.
spiral bevel gear n. a bevel gear that is also a spiral gear.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > wheel > [noun] > cog or gear > with axles or teeth set at specific angle
crown wheel1646
mitre wheel1825
mitre1844
skew gearinga1877
helical gear1888
spiral gear1888
skew gear1908
helical1913
spiral bevel gear1915
1915 V. W. Pagé Automobile Repairing ix. 767 The advantages of the spiral bevel gear are mainly due to the shape of the teeth which roll into engagement more smoothly than the ordinary form of bevel gears.
1973 Transmission & Rear Axle—Bedford Trucks & Coaches (Vauxhall Motors) 168 The differential, spiral bevel gear and pinion can be serviced without removing axle from vehicle.
spiral binding n. a book binding in which a helical wire passes through a closely spaced row of holes near the inside edge of each leaf.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > manufacture or production of books > book-binding > type of binding > [noun]
antiquing1728
royal binding1808
Russia binding1817
gothique1818
half-binding1821
Roxburghe1839
paper cover1843
trade binding1874
tree-calf1879
Grolier1880
yapp1883
cloth-work1885
publisher's binding1885
tree-marble1885
treed calf1892
presentation binding1893
quarter leather1894
quarter calf1896
three-quarter binding1897
library binding1903
circuit-binding1909
publisher's cloth1911
quarter binding1912
loose back1923
open back1923
spring-back1923
spiral binding1949
1949 D. Melcher & N. Larrick Printing & Promotion Handbk. 280/2 Spiral binding, see mechanical bindings.
1968 F. G. Holliday Man. Stationery ii. viii. 440 The sheets..are fed on to a conveyor to be trimmed, knocked up and punched to receive the spiral binding.
spiral-bound adj.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > book > manufacture or production of books > book-binding > type of binding > [adjective]
full-bound1705
super-extra1774
half-bound1775
Etruscan1792
antique1794
Russia-bound1808
vellum-bound1836
vellum-covered1836
quarter-bound1842
cloth-bound1860
limp1863
cottage1874
monastic1880
parchment-bound1881
yapped1882
all along1888
Grolieresque1889
Maioli1890
perfect1890
treed calf1892
Lyonnais1893
hardback1894
dos-à-dos1952
perfect bound1960
spiral-bound1961
spiral1977
1961 Lebende Sprachen 6 104/1 Spiral-bound stenographer's notebook.
1969 D. Francis Enquiry iii. 37 He stood..holding a spiral bound notebook.
1976 E. Ward Hanged Man xxxi. 200 A thick spiral-bound document.
spiral divergence n. Aeronautics = spiral instability n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > qualities and parameters of aircraft > [noun] > spiral stability or instability
spiral instability1914
spiral stability1947
spiral divergence1949
1949 Jrnl. Royal Aeronaut. Soc. 53 541/1 There are two common kinds of aircraft instability which usually would be judged tolerable according to the above criterion. These are the phugoid oscillation (longitudinal-symmetric motion) and the spiral divergence (lateral-antisymmetric motion).
1970 T. Hacker Flight Stability & Control vii. 159 The possibility of eliminating spiral divergence by design can be made to stand out by means of stability diagrams.
spiral gear n. a gear wheel whose teeth are cut obliquely to the axis of the wheel and are curved to form part of what is approximately a spiral or helix; esp. a skew gear of this kind.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > wheel > [noun] > cog or gear > with axles or teeth set at specific angle
crown wheel1646
mitre wheel1825
mitre1844
skew gearinga1877
helical gear1888
spiral gear1888
skew gear1908
helical1913
spiral bevel gear1915
1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. 338 Spiral gear, includes helical, stepped, and worm gearing.
1914 J. G. Horner Gear Cutting v. 48 Since the special gear-cutting machines have come into general use, the manufacture of spiral gears has been established on a better commercial basis than hitherto.
1971 B. Scharf Engin. & its Lang. xii. 155 In some types of multiple gear train, the same gear drives a helical gear (with parallel axis) as well as a spiral gear (with skew axis).
spiral gearing n.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > parts of machines > wheel > [adjective] > types of cogs or gears
sun-and-planet1796
spiral gearinga1877
chainless1897
planetary1904
epicyclic1906
hypoid1926
positraction1957
a1877 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. III. 2275/1 Spiral gearing, a gear-wheel having meshing spiral ribs and grooves. The teeth run around the periphery of the gear-wheel, and meet in an angle on a line midway from either edge of the wheel.
1930 Engineering 2 May 559/2 Spiral gearing has been found to have many valuable applications.
spiral instability n. Aeronautics an instability in which an aeroplane undergoing a banked turn tends to enter a descending spiral as a result of sideslipping and reduction of the radius of turn.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > qualities and parameters of aircraft > [noun] > spiral stability or instability
spiral instability1914
spiral stability1947
spiral divergence1949
1914 L. Bairstow et al. Rep. & Mem. Advisory Comm. for Aeronautics No. 77. 168 A machine which is liable to spiral instability when gyroscopic actions are eliminated, cannot become stable owing to gyroscopic action of the propeller and engine.
1970 T. Hacker Flight Stability & Control vii. 162 The elimination of spiral instability..is achieved by the constraint of the angle of bank ϕ, obviously in addition to correcting the heading.
spiral stability n. Aeronautics the capactiy of an aeroplane not to enter a spiral while executing a banked turn, or to recover from a steeply-banked spiral path.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > air or space travel > a means of conveyance through the air > aeroplane > qualities and parameters of aircraft > [noun] > spiral stability or instability
spiral instability1914
spiral stability1947
spiral divergence1949
1947 C. F. Toms Introd. Aeronautics v. 222 The use of a certain amount of dihedral..is essential for both directional and spiral stability.
1978 M. Simons Model Aircraft Aerodynamics xi. 126 If the model is primarily a thermal soarer..effort should be concentrated on spiral stability.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
spiraladj.2
/ˈspʌɪərəl/ Rising like a spire; tall and tapering or pointed:
a. Of rocks, edifices, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > fact or condition of tapering > condition of tapering to a point > [adjective] > at the top > like a spire or obelisk
steeply1551
steepled1600
spired1612
obelisk1638
spiral1658
spiry1664
spirous1841
obeliscoid1877
1658 E. Phillips New World Eng. Words Spiral, belonging to a pyramid or spire-steeple.
1665 J. Webb Vindic. Stone-Heng (1725) 181 Trophies..were evermore made of high and spiral Stones: And they will have these..which are high and spiral, to be, not a Trophy, but a place for electing of Kings.
1740 J. Dyer Ruins of Rome 8 The spiral Tomb Of antient Chammos.
1790 Coll. Voy. round World V. ix. 1675 The various summits which are spiral cannot be viewed without exciting the most awful ideas.
b. Of trees.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by growth or development > defined by habit > tree or woody plant > characterized by habit > [adjective] > spring
spiry1664
spiring1707
spiral1729
1729 R. Savage Wanderer iv. 15 Turning, with sighs, far spiral firs he sees.
c1750 W. Shenstone Elegies xxiii. 91 Cheer'd by the verdure of my spiral wood.
1827 H. Steuart Planter's Guide (1828) 338 It is indispensably necessary..that the standard or grove Trees should be kept spiral, and the underwood subordinate in its character.
1842 J. Wilson Recreations Christopher North I. 365 The sweet Furness Fells,..among its spiral larches showing..groves and copses of the old unviolated woods.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online September 2019).
spiralv.
/ˈspʌɪrəl/, /ˈspʌɪrl̩/, U.S. /ˈspaɪrəl/ 1.
a. intransitive. To wind or move in a spiral manner; to form spiral curves.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > movement in circle or curve > move in a circle or curve [verb (intransitive)] > move in spirals
pirl1538
spire1607
curl1791
whorl1805
coil1816
spiral1835
spiralize1851
corkscrew1853
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (intransitive)] > form spirals
screw1745
spiral1835
1835 M. Scott Cruise of Midge xii, in Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Mar. 453/1 We began to ascend the narrow corkscrew path that spiralled through the rocky grass-piece.
1851 H. Melville Moby-Dick lxxxvii. 433 The..curling line buoyantly rising and spiralling towards the air.
1904 E. Robins Magn. North vii. 124 It curled and spiralled, and described..involved and long-looped flourishes.
b. To fly an aircraft in a spiral path. Also with down, downwards.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > air or space travel > action of flying (in) aircraft > specific flying operations or procedures > [verb (intransitive)] > fly in spiral path
spiral1916
tailspin1920
1916 E. C. Middleton Aircraft iii. 33 The pilot either ‘spirals’ or glides down, until he is able to ascertain the direction of the prevailing wind.
1918 E. M. Roberts Flying Fighter 272 On getting over the station at which I was to land I shut off power and started to spiral down.
1918 War Birds (1927) 66 I also hear that Al Rothwell distinguished himself by spiralling into the ground.
1922 H. L. Foster Adventures Trop. Tramp xi. 173 The aviator spiraled downwards towards his landing place.
1941 F. Pope & A. S. Otis Elements Aeronaut. ix. 85 Practice is required..to spiral over a fixed spot when the wind is blowing.
1978 M. Simons Model Aircraft Aerodynamics iv. 37 Even better rates of climb would result if the model did not have to spiral.
c. figurative. To move rapidly in one direction (usually upwards), in a manner considered to resemble a spiral; to increase or decrease in response to the same movement of another quantity or other quantities. Cf.spiral n. 2d.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > upward movement > rise or go up [verb (intransitive)] > rapidly
updart1791
uprush1818
to strike up1837
spiral1922
the world > relative properties > quantity > increase in quantity, amount, or degree > [verb (intransitive)] > progressively
spiral1922
snowball1929
escalate1959
the world > relative properties > quantity > decrease or reduction in quantity, amount, or degree > decrease in quantity, amount, or degree [verb (intransitive)] > progressively
spiral1979
1922 H. Crane Let. c18 June (1965) 91 Under the influence of aether and amnesia my mind spiraled to a kind of seventh heaven of consciousness.
1941 Time 20 Oct. 35/1 Even if import and farm prices resist all controls, processors' and retailers' prices will rise but not spiral with them.
1942 E. W. Kemmerer ABC of Inflation 156 If wages and the prices of farm products are not adequately restricted but are permitted to spiral upward..the whole price situation will get out of control.
1959 Listener 18 June 1052/1 The cost of living has spiralled.
1977 Milestones Summer 19/1 A similar table published in the Autumn 1974 issue of Milestones shows how much the cost of spare parts has spiralled.
1979 Tucson (Arizona) Citizen 20 Sept. 1 a/4 The dollar spiraled downward on European money markets today.
1979 Daily Tel. 5 Dec. 21 The..risks of sending demand, output and tax revenue spiralling down again while the cost of spending programmes such as unemployment benefit..spiral up.
2. transitive. To twist or coil spirally.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > curvature > coil > [verb (transitive)] > make spiral or helical
snail1605
convert1782
to screw up1827
corkscrew1837
spiralize1851
turbana1861
spiral1876
1876 F. Francis Bk. Angling (ed. 4) vi. 225 Spiral it round to lash it on to the hook.
Derivatives
ˈspiralling adj. and n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > increase in quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > progressive increase
mo and moOE
crescendo1785
spiral1931
escalation1938
spiralling1944
snowballing1966
the world > relative properties > quantity > increase in quantity, amount, or degree > [adjective] > increasing progressively
feeding1641
rolling1719
snowballing1861
spiralling1944
escalatory1965
1944 W. H. Auden For Time Being (1945) 90 Even the problems of Trade Cycles And Spiralling Prices are regarded by the experts As practically solved.
1958 Spectator 18 July 92/3 The twin threat of a renewed world currency crisis and a spiralling of trade restriction.
1965 Listener 27 May 797/2 The book is worth a shelf-load of those fashionable intellectualities that oh-so-knowingly chart out the spirallings of psychotic zombies, incapable of feelings, incapable of contacts, their spiritual telephone-wires all cut.
1969 H. Perkin Key Profession iv. 138 The post-war situation of spiralling prices and incomes.
1979 E. H. Gombrich Sense of Order vi. 160 Spiralling terminations suggest the curling of elastic matter.
1979 Nature 14 June 622/1 Viscous drag on the planet's orbital motion would then lead to a spiralling into the stellar core.
1980 Oxf. Diocesan Mag. June 7/2 The failure of extrinsic motivation to fill the need is evident from the spiralling demands of frustrated materialists.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1914; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1656adj.1adv.1556
adj.21658
v.1835- montagu's blenny
- montagu's harrier
- montagu's sea snail
- montagu's sucker
- montagu's sucking fish
- montagu's venus
- montague
- montague curl
- montague grammar
- montaignesque
- montaignian
- montaignish
- montaignism
- montalbano's phosphorus
- montan wax
- montana
- montana gin
- montana nymph
- montana tree
- montanan
- montane
- montaner
- montanes
- montanest
- montanian