1
: a cylindrical device which has a rim or ridge at each end and an axial hole for a pin or spindle and on which material (such as thread, wire, or tape) is wound
2
: material or the amount of material wound on a spool
spooled; spooling; spools
1
: to wind on a spool
2
: wind entry 3
spool the thread off the bobbin
3
: to regulate the transmission of by means of a spooler
spool data
1
: to wind itself on a spool
2
: to be wound or unwound
3
: to regulate data flow by means of a spooler
Examples of spool in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2024
Easy access zipper pockets allow storage of pliers, spools, and other items.
Tackle bags will hold individual lure boxes, so an angler can keep lure types—soft plastics, crankbaits, topwater lures, deep-diving lures—in separate spaces.
—Sage Marshall, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024
By nightfall, the street was crowded with apparently hot merchandise: carbon-monoxide detectors, Leviton tamper-resistant outlets, and, notably, hundreds of heavy spools of copper and electrical wiring, the most expensive of which can retail for more than seven hundred dollars.
—Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2024
These tales spin out like spools of fine gold, delicate in their delivery, eschewing catchy hooks to instead relish in simplicity.
—Allaire Nuss, EW.com, 6 Feb. 2024
Some printers will require proprietary spools or cartridges, which will often cost more.
—Jade Chung-Lee, PCMAG, 31 Jan. 2024
The spools frame her mask-like open mouth, decorating voids in the human skull that signaled the soul’s vivacity in pre-Columbian culture.
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024
Most anglers just rinse their fly reels off with freshwater, but that water may not penetrate and flush the coils of thick line on the spool.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 7 Dec. 2023
There were rolls of oilcloth to make table covers, spools of ribbons and bows to lend flair to gifts, fleece for blankets, foam for cushions, a spectrum of threads and rainbows of yarn.
—John Carlisle, Detroit Free Press, 25 Feb. 2024
Paul Tassi, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
From a small machine, next to him, orders spooled like ribbons.
—Souvankham Thammavongsa, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
The anchor line spooled out and tightened, slowing the boat down quickly, officials told AL.com.
—Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2024
Having more than one bluegill setup spooled with different line for different situations can prove very handy.
—David A. Brown, Field & Stream, 28 Feb. 2024
Making massive shifts in the business can take time to spool up new sales and, in turn, crunch liquidity.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
Xist helps shut down one of the two X’s in each female cell by coating the chromosome in a way that looks a bit like a cloud of cotton candy spooled around a cone at a county fair.
—Jonathan Wosen Reprints, STAT, 1 Feb. 2024
On a tournament on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Texas, Daniel had No. 7 Shad Raps rigged on three different fishing rods each spooled with different sizes of line — 8-pound, 12-pound and 17-pound.
—Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
Speaking of rods and reels, most serious gator hunters keep a short, heavy saltwater spinning rod and reel spooled with heavy braid handy in the boat, and it’s equipped with a 12/0 weighted treble hook, which can be cast over the gator to snag him.
—Will Brantley, Field & Stream, 1 June 2023
Noun
The Bobbin Cuff, for example, takes its cues from a spool of thread, and hides its watch underneath a yellow sapphire set in the gold.
—Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2024
Easy access zipper pockets allow storage of pliers, spools, and other items.
Tackle bags will hold individual lure boxes, so an angler can keep lure types—soft plastics, crankbaits, topwater lures, deep-diving lures—in separate spaces.
—Sage Marshall, Field & Stream, 4 Jan. 2024
By nightfall, the street was crowded with apparently hot merchandise: carbon-monoxide detectors, Leviton tamper-resistant outlets, and, notably, hundreds of heavy spools of copper and electrical wiring, the most expensive of which can retail for more than seven hundred dollars.
—Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2024
These tales spin out like spools of fine gold, delicate in their delivery, eschewing catchy hooks to instead relish in simplicity.
—Allaire Nuss, EW.com, 6 Feb. 2024
Some printers will require proprietary spools or cartridges, which will often cost more.
—Jade Chung-Lee, PCMAG, 31 Jan. 2024
The spools frame her mask-like open mouth, decorating voids in the human skull that signaled the soul’s vivacity in pre-Columbian culture.
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024
Most anglers just rinse their fly reels off with freshwater, but that water may not penetrate and flush the coils of thick line on the spool.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 7 Dec. 2023
There were rolls of oilcloth to make table covers, spools of ribbons and bows to lend flair to gifts, fleece for blankets, foam for cushions, a spectrum of threads and rainbows of yarn.
—John Carlisle, Detroit Free Press, 25 Feb. 2024
Verb
The delay news means that all actors are released from their contracts and are able to continue taking new work rather than sitting and waiting around for Euphoria to finally spool up, a show they are paid far less for than their other, high-profile movies that the big stars have been in recently.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
From a small machine, next to him, orders spooled like ribbons.
—Souvankham Thammavongsa, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
The anchor line spooled out and tightened, slowing the boat down quickly, officials told AL.com.
—Olivia Lloyd, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2024
Having more than one bluegill setup spooled with different line for different situations can prove very handy.
—David A. Brown, Field & Stream, 28 Feb. 2024
Making massive shifts in the business can take time to spool up new sales and, in turn, crunch liquidity.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
Xist helps shut down one of the two X’s in each female cell by coating the chromosome in a way that looks a bit like a cloud of cotton candy spooled around a cone at a county fair.
—Jonathan Wosen Reprints, STAT, 1 Feb. 2024
On a tournament on Sam Rayburn Reservoir in Texas, Daniel had No. 7 Shad Raps rigged on three different fishing rods each spooled with different sizes of line — 8-pound, 12-pound and 17-pound.
—Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024
Speaking of rods and reels, most serious gator hunters keep a short, heavy saltwater spinning rod and reel spooled with heavy braid handy in the boat, and it’s equipped with a 12/0 weighted treble hook, which can be cast over the gator to snag him.
—Will Brantley, Field & Stream, 1 June 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spool.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Spool.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spool. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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