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
: 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
Synonyms
Examples of winding in a Sentence
Adjective
a long and winding path through the woods
a winding staircase leads to the top of the lighthouse
Recent Examples on the Web
Todd Plummer, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Apr. 2024
With the regular-season winding down, the Lakers are seeking home-court advantage for the play-in tournament.
—Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024
The district of winding alleyways is known for picturesque teahouses, where geisha and their maiko apprentices, wearing fancy kimono and hair ornaments, perform in dance and music.
—Yuri Kageyama, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024
The winding of the clock each year starts on the second Sunday in March and ends the first Sunday in November, which will be on Nov. 3 this year.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Feb. 2024
So Pearson chose the highway, a winding and occasionally bumpy one that would ultimately lead from his native British Columbia to a new home in Indianapolis.
—Hali Tauxe, The Indianapolis Star, 11 Jan. 2024
Cars without drivers have become a common sight on San Francisco’s winding, hilly and often foggy streets.
—Jeremy B. Merrill, Washington Post, 11 Aug. 2023
It’s been a weird, winding road, but compared to the dozen or so messaging apps Google has tried over the years, this isn’t actually that bad.
—Richard Lawler, The Verge, 23 Feb. 2024
Although cars without drivers have become a common sight on San Francisco’s winding and sloping streets, there are long-standing tensions between the city’s residents and the cars.
—Maham Javaid, Washington Post, 12 Feb. 2024
IEEE Spectrum, 4 Apr. 2024
When driving through the park, many roads are narrow and winding, so park officials recommend building extra time for travel.
—Emily Pennington, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2024
It’s been a long and winding road to the altar for Young Sheldon's George and Mandy, but the pair are finally getting hitched!
—Jp Mangalindan, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
The long and winding road Michael Dell’s company began life in 1984 as PC’s Limited—selling computers, and that’s it.
—Michal Lev-Ram, Fortune, 25 Mar. 2024
Though there's no evidence that Jensen was involved with the famous winding road of Door County, he's often credited with the design, potentially designing it uniquely as a means of maximizing conservation in its construction.
—Alex Groth, Journal Sentinel, 21 Feb. 2024
With more twists and turns than a long and winding road, Girl in the Picture offers an unforgettable ride.
—Melissa Sherrard, EW.com, 16 Sep. 2023
The Border Community head’s latest LP is a winding, grooving, electro-organic dream of a record that sees possibility on all shores.
—Pitchfork, 7 Dec. 2023
With each looming deadline, the stakes grow higher and the politics more winding.
—Allison Pecorin, ABC News, 12 Jan. 2024
Noun
Bostonians often joke that the city's many winding, one-way streets were adapted from colonial-era cow paths—routes literally created by livestock—that long predate the automobile.
—Todd Plummer, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Apr. 2024
With the regular-season winding down, the Lakers are seeking home-court advantage for the play-in tournament.
—Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024
The district of winding alleyways is known for picturesque teahouses, where geisha and their maiko apprentices, wearing fancy kimono and hair ornaments, perform in dance and music.
—Yuri Kageyama, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024
The winding of the clock each year starts on the second Sunday in March and ends the first Sunday in November, which will be on Nov. 3 this year.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Feb. 2024
So Pearson chose the highway, a winding and occasionally bumpy one that would ultimately lead from his native British Columbia to a new home in Indianapolis.
—Hali Tauxe, The Indianapolis Star, 11 Jan. 2024
Cars without drivers have become a common sight on San Francisco’s winding, hilly and often foggy streets.
—Jeremy B. Merrill, Washington Post, 11 Aug. 2023
It’s been a weird, winding road, but compared to the dozen or so messaging apps Google has tried over the years, this isn’t actually that bad.
—Richard Lawler, The Verge, 23 Feb. 2024
Although cars without drivers have become a common sight on San Francisco’s winding and sloping streets, there are long-standing tensions between the city’s residents and the cars.
—Maham Javaid, Washington Post, 12 Feb. 2024
Adjective
Terence Martinez, executive director of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, shared how his winding career path led him from childhood aspirations of becoming a doctor to working in industry and then to his current role at IEEE.
—IEEE Spectrum, 4 Apr. 2024
When driving through the park, many roads are narrow and winding, so park officials recommend building extra time for travel.
—Emily Pennington, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2024
It’s been a long and winding road to the altar for Young Sheldon's George and Mandy, but the pair are finally getting hitched!
—Jp Mangalindan, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
The long and winding road Michael Dell’s company began life in 1984 as PC’s Limited—selling computers, and that’s it.
—Michal Lev-Ram, Fortune, 25 Mar. 2024
Though there's no evidence that Jensen was involved with the famous winding road of Door County, he's often credited with the design, potentially designing it uniquely as a means of maximizing conservation in its construction.
—Alex Groth, Journal Sentinel, 21 Feb. 2024
With more twists and turns than a long and winding road, Girl in the Picture offers an unforgettable ride.
—Melissa Sherrard, EW.com, 16 Sep. 2023
The Border Community head’s latest LP is a winding, grooving, electro-organic dream of a record that sees possibility on all shores.
—Pitchfork, 7 Dec. 2023
With each looming deadline, the stakes grow higher and the politics more winding.
—Allison Pecorin, ABC News, 12 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'winding.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near winding
Cite this Entry
“Winding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/winding. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
winding
1 of 2 noun
wind·ing
ˈwīn-diŋ 
1
: material (as wire) wound or coiled about an object
2
: a single turn of wound material
winding
2 of 2 adjective
: marked by winding: as
a
: having a noticeable curved or spiral form
a winding staircase
b
: having a course that winds
a winding road
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