as in coils
to follow a circular or spiral course
a narrow road spiraling up the mountain to the summit
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Recent Examples of spirals
Nathalie Nietzsche-Knappe, Architectural Digest, 7 Apr. 2026
Sure, the stars move relative to one another, our Sun burns through a little more of its fuel, and the Moon slowly spirals away from the Earth as our rotation rate gradually slows down.
—Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026
Inside, a central ramp—which spirals upward and outward from one exhibition floor to the next—creates an open interior space, flooded with daylight that pours in through a glass dome.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Mar. 2026
And that spirals her, and then she gets all caught up.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2026
Inspired by true events, The Exiles will tell the story of a desperate Westerner who pursues greener pastures in Asia, instead finding greed, rivalry and ego that ultimately spirals into a shocking murder.
—Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026
That is, at least until life spirals you into the next higher tier of the lesson.
—Magi Helena, Dallas Morning News, 27 Jan. 2026
Claire Foy plays Helen, who spirals emotionally after the death of her photographer father, Alisdair (Brendan Gleeson).
—Adam Graham, Boston Herald, 24 Jan. 2026
Wright plays the overprotective mother Laura Sanderson in the Amazon Prime series, The Girlfriend, who spirals when her son Daniel (Laurie Davidson) brings home his new mysterious girlfriend Cherry (Olivia Cooke).
—Brenton Blanchet, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
Verb
The tower was designed by the British architecture firm RMJM and features a twisting glass façade that spirals upward into a needle-like spire.
—Nathalie Nietzsche-Knappe, Architectural Digest, 7 Apr. 2026
Sure, the stars move relative to one another, our Sun burns through a little more of its fuel, and the Moon slowly spirals away from the Earth as our rotation rate gradually slows down.
—Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026
Inside, a central ramp—which spirals upward and outward from one exhibition floor to the next—creates an open interior space, flooded with daylight that pours in through a glass dome.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Mar. 2026
And that spirals her, and then she gets all caught up.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 26 Mar. 2026
Inspired by true events, The Exiles will tell the story of a desperate Westerner who pursues greener pastures in Asia, instead finding greed, rivalry and ego that ultimately spirals into a shocking murder.
—Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026
That is, at least until life spirals you into the next higher tier of the lesson.
—Magi Helena, Dallas Morning News, 27 Jan. 2026
Claire Foy plays Helen, who spirals emotionally after the death of her photographer father, Alisdair (Brendan Gleeson).
—Adam Graham, Boston Herald, 24 Jan. 2026
Wright plays the overprotective mother Laura Sanderson in the Amazon Prime series, The Girlfriend, who spirals when her son Daniel (Laurie Davidson) brings home his new mysterious girlfriend Cherry (Olivia Cooke).
—Brenton Blanchet, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spirals
Verb
-
Dry all surfaces completely and replace knobs, drip pans, and coils back on the stove.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
14 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Determined to keep a similar scenario from playing out again, organizations everywhere are rolling out new algorithms to replace RSA and elliptic curves.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Made of metal and hand-blown glass, this lamp is the place where angles meet curves — a timeless piece with a healthy dose of edge.—
Julissa James,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Many travelers opt to take a four-wheeler down the Sand Highway, a one-way trail into a canyon on the boundary of the dunes, or on the South Boundary Trail, which winds along the eastern side of the main dune area.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
2 Apr. 2026
-
The rooms With curvaceous walls, built in fast-growing Indonesian bamboo, split-level villas with a spiral staircase that winds seashell-like between a ground-floor lounge and upstairs living quarters have the grounding feel of being wrapped in a tropical bamboo forest.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The micro workouts included moves like rotini spiral planks, spaghetti curls and penne plié squats, along with star jacks, which were inspired by the new Protein+ star shape.—
Chiara Kim,
PEOPLE,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Earlier this week, she was seen filming with tight '80s curls.—
Meg Walters,
InStyle,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
To load the product onto the brush, Barnes swirls the tool into the pan twice and taps it twice to prevent fallout.—
Jenny Berg,
Vogue,
12 Dec. 2025
-
The lights are dim and jazzy music swirls the intimate crowd.—
Sofia Celeste,
Footwear News,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Even in the harshest descriptions of the violence and almost unbelievably cruel twists of fate that Yarris endured (the DNA testing keeps getting accidentally mucked up), Brody lends him a vital indomitable spark.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
16 Apr. 2026
-
The lawsuit and letter are the latest twists in what’s been a dramatic month for West Suburban.—
Lisa Schencker,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spirals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spirals. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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