winding

noun wind·ing \ ˈwīn-diŋ \

|Updated on: 10 Jun 2018

Definition of winding

1 : material (such as wire) wound or coiled about an object (such as an armature); also : a single turn of the wound material

2 a : the act of one that winds

b : the manner of winding something

3 : a curved or sinuous course, line, or progress

See winding defined for kids

Recent Examples of winding from the Web

Its winding walkways and shady groves envelop you in tenderness, shown and spoken.

— maria panaritis, Philly.com, "The Haas family gave Stoneleigh gardens to the public. Lower Merion Schools should keep their hands off of it. | Maria Panaritis," 2 June 2018
But their journeys to this outcome followed various winding paths, and for many, their educational journeys aren’t over yet.

— nyssa kruse, courant.com, "378 Middlesex Community College Graduates Told To 'Commit To The Journey, Not The Outcome'," 24 May 2018
Her parents—Clarence, who worked at a detective agency run by a former police officer, and Florence, a stay-at-home mother—owned a three-story house with a winding staircase.

— jennifer gonnerman, The New Yorker, "How One Woman’s Fight to Save Her Family Helped Lead to a Mass Exoneration," 19 May 2018
Dry ice, first produced in 1835 by French inventor Adrien-Jean-Pierre Thilorier, has had a winding road to becoming a rat killer.

— david grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Dry Ice Is the Newest Weapon Against Rats," 17 Apr. 2018
On a winding, bumpy section of road that defies the stereotype of the roads in the north of Ireland being inherently better than those in the south, there are no fewer than eight diesel stations in a very sparsely populated area.

— kevin cullen, BostonGlobe.com, "Irish hopes may be stopped at the border," 8 Apr. 2018
At the bottom of a winding road, under an archway cut from large pink stones, is the gurgling spring the village was named for.

— dina kraft, The Christian Science Monitor, "Israel at 70: A tale of two histories," 1 May 2018
Arsene Wenger is 'confident' the club's latest star with a winding-down contract Aaron Ramsey will turn his back on rival propositions and commit his future to Arsenal.

— SI.com, "Arsene Wenger 'Confident' of Tying Aaron Ramsey's Long-Term Future to Arsenal Amid Speculation," 7 Apr. 2018
Callaway arrived at the Mets after a winding career that spanned continents.

— james wagner, New York Times, "Mets’ New Manager Hopes to Deliver, Using Hard Data and the Hard Truth," 28 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'winding.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of winding

before 12th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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winding

adjective

Definition of winding

: marked by winding: such as

a : having a curved or spiral course or form

a winding stairway

b : having a course that winds

a winding road

Examples of winding in a Sentence

a long and winding path through the woods
a winding staircase leads to the top of the lighthouse

Recent Examples of winding from the Web

Their long and winding journey north through dangerous territory puts both of them through changes, not unexpectedly.

— chris ball, cleveland.com, "'Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: In Concert,' now on DVD and Blu-ray (review)," 2 May 2018
Peter Schmuck, columnist: The long and winding road the Ravens took to their first pick in the 2018 NFL Draft finally led to South Carolina tight end Hayden Hurst with the 25th pick.

— baltimoresun.com, "Instant analysis of Ravens first-round pick, TE Hayden Hurst of South Carolina," 27 Apr. 2018
How the state reached this point is a complicated and winding path.

— allie morris, San Antonio Express-News, "Top court to take up racial question in Texas redistricting case," 22 Apr. 2018
The dogs puzzle out the boy’s mission, and work to assist him on his long and winding road to Spot.

— gary thompson, Philly.com, "'Isle of Dogs': A Wes Anderson movie fur the whole family," 27 Mar. 2018
One, a winding (but not too winding) road, ideally much of it two-lane.

— peter fish, San Francisco Chronicle, "Road trip along Sierra Nevada’s Feather River," 16 Mar. 2018
Those last four words are a reminder to Lenik, who is in his first major-league spring-training camp after a long and winding road in baseball.

— pete grathoff, kansascity, "Royals' Kevin Lenik once signed autographs after being hit in face by a line drive | The Kansas City Star," 12 Mar. 2018
One of them even borrows from the concept that Greendale was built on 80 years ago — that is to have winding paths that lead to everything a family needs.

— jane ford-stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Come on China and Egypt, Greendale's St. Alphonsus School 'engineers' are ready for you," 24 Jan. 2018
The winding path is lined with hibiscus and frangipani flowers that Fijians traditionally wear behind the ear (left for single, right for taken).

— chaney kwak, Condé Nast Traveler, "Fiji Isn't Just for Honeymooners Anymore," 17 Jan. 2018

First Known Use of winding

1530

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

winding Synonyms

WINDING Defined for Kids

winding

adjective wind·ing \ ˈwīn-diŋ \

Definition of winding for Students

1 : having a course made up of a series of twists and turns

a winding path

2 : having a curved or spiral form

a winding staircase

Learn More about winding

See words that rhyme with winding Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for winding Nglish: Translation of winding for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of winding for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about winding

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winding

Definition of winding

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winding

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