as in rotating
to move in circles around an axis or center
the kayaker had got sucked into the whirlpool, and his kayak was pinwheeling helplessly
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pinwheeling
Verb
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The third-year students spent nearly a year developing and refining the engine, which runs through continuous rotating explosions in a circular chamber.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
18 May 2026 -
The worst of the severe weather is expected west and northwest of the Kansas City metro, where supercells (large, rotating thunderstorms) capable of producing hail and strong to intense tornadoes are most likely from central Kansas and southeast Nebraska into Iowa and northwest Missouri.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
18 May 2026
Verb
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Longtime residents might remember the hot dogs and burgers making their way past eager students on field trips at the National Museum of American History’s revolving Carousel Cafeteria, or the large, greenhouse-like McDonald’s inside the Air and Space Museum.—
Fritz Hahn,
Washington Post,
15 May 2026
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So, for borrowers carrying revolving balances, that means the high cost of credit card debt isn't going anywhere either.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
14 May 2026
Verb
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After decades of mathematicians spinning their wheels, the problem suddenly seemed tractable.—
Joseph Howlett,
Scientific American,
19 May 2026
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Some come out the other side of illness, but most loop through an unpredictable whirlpool, at times within sight of shore, at other moments spinning back out to sea.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Pinwheeling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pinwheeling. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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