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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O’Connor beat everybody down the ice, curled at the left faceoff circle, then fired the puck past Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger’s stick side for a 1-0 Avs lead.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
27 Apr. 2025
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Her nails were curled and misshapen, and had even started to grow back into her feet.—
Alina Hartounian,
NPR,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Sharing his battle At that point, Lowe faced a winding path of medical appointments, treatments and side effects.—
Lisa Schencker,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Apr. 2025
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Hello, goodbye: The long and winding road of music biopics has finally led us to four feature films about the Beatles, coming in April 2028 by way of Bond director Sam Mendes.—
Raven Smith,
Vogue,
2 Apr. 2025
Noun
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As policymakers debate the future of the dollar amid a mounting debt crisis, financial professionals concerned about its long-term value can begin adopting sound money principles today, positioning themselves and their clients ahead of the curve.—
Sanford Mann,
Forbes.com,
1 May 2025
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For instance, earlier this month stocks sank and bond yields rose, particularly on the longer end of the curve, Chaudhuri pointed out.—
Michelle Fox,
CNBC,
30 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Curled under a rock was the tiniest snake ever recorded — slender as spaghetti, small enough to coil on a U.S. quarter.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
23 Apr. 2025
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It’s been two years since the devastating season 1 finale of The Last of Us, HBO’s adaptation of the 2013 Naughty Dog video game that coiled its tendrils around our throats and yanked us into a bleak apocalypse.—
Sara Netzley,
EW.com,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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At Lou Lou’s Jungle Room, the circular bar that appeared in the original Top Gun in 1986 was revived.—
Kate Kassin,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
29 Apr. 2025
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With circular business models still in their infancy across most sectors, investors have a singular opportunity to get in on the ground floor.—
Rob Kaplan,
Forbes.com,
29 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 book will chronicle his parents, as well as his winding journey from childhood into young adulthood.—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
2 May 2025
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Listen to this article The Indiana Supreme Court upheld a former Gary teenager’s 110-year prison sentence Wednesday for a 1996 East Chicago triple homicide after years of winding appeals.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
2 May 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 6 May. 2025.
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