1
2
as in twirled
to move (something) in a curved or circular path on or as if on an axis
the figure skater whirled his partner with effortless grace
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in rotated
to move in circles around an axis or center
the gambler held his breath as the roulette wheel whirled
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in sped
to proceed or move quickly
cars whirling by on the highway
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of whirled
In a desperate attempt to protect her baby, the victim whirled around, confronted Aherne and grabbed the knife in the stranger’s hand, her infant child falling from the changing table onto the floor during the scuffle, cops said.
—
Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 7 Jan. 2026
Here it gets whirled with Parmesan and a handful of herbs that take it to the next level.
—Maggie Meyer Glisan, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Dec. 2025
As a writer-producer on The Shield and then the creator, showrunner, and main writer on Sons of Anarchy, Sutter perfected an ultraviolent blend of sentimentality, nihilism, and masculinity that whirled around his characters like so much cigarette smoke and motorcycle exhaust.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2025
After a Joey Estes fastball came near his head, Robles whirled around and chucked his bat at the pitcher.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Aug. 2025
Between events, Diamandis whirled around, making and cementing connections.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 7 Jan. 2026
Here it gets whirled with Parmesan and a handful of herbs that take it to the next level.
—Maggie Meyer Glisan, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 Dec. 2025
As a writer-producer on The Shield and then the creator, showrunner, and main writer on Sons of Anarchy, Sutter perfected an ultraviolent blend of sentimentality, nihilism, and masculinity that whirled around his characters like so much cigarette smoke and motorcycle exhaust.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2025
After a Joey Estes fastball came near his head, Robles whirled around and chucked his bat at the pitcher.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Aug. 2025
Between events, Diamandis whirled around, making and cementing connections.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whirled
Verb
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The looming threat of a nationwide TikTok shutdown stirred a mass exodus of users who, in fear of losing their audiences and income streams, migrated to other social media platforms, like Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.—
Monica Alba,
NBC news,
22 Jan. 2026
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Her death, along with that of a teenager, Armita Geravand, the following year in similar circumstances, stirred a collective rage that fueled the Women, Life, Freedom movement.—
Ellie Austin,
Fortune,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Saliva, a yawn, even the sound of hair being twirled crackles with intensity thanks to Julij Zornik’s stark sound design.—
David Opie,
IndieWire,
4 Dec. 2025
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In the video, which reached over 2 million views as of Tuesday, Stubby twirled with excitement, showing off his fresh look.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Dec. 2025
Verb
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By 1984, each of the British new wave gods’ first three albums had gone platinum, their cinematic videos were regularly rotated on MTV, and nonstop global touring attracted Swiftian levels of excitable fans.—
A.D. Amorosi,
Variety,
24 Jan. 2026
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Earlier this month, Jefferies strategist Christopher Wood eliminated the 10% allocation to bitcoin in his Fear & Greed portfolio and rotated into gold and gold-mining equities, citing the risk of quantum vulnerabilities.—
Liz Napolitano,
CNBC,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Soon after, the driver of the Yukon sped away from the officer, the department said.—
Austen Erblat,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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Suzuki sped through a PowerPoint presentation that catalogued twenty years of reporting.—
E. Tammy Kim,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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And again Detroit had an answer, when James Van Riemsdyk spun away from a defender for a tap-in at the top of the Minnesota crease.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
23 Jan. 2026
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Designed to melt instantly into skin, all of this is spun into a lightweight cream that deposits medium, buildable luminous matte coverage meant to last for up to 16 hours.—
Kiana Murden,
Vogue,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Getty Images In the frenzied state of whether the Los Angeles Dodgers have an unfair economic advantage – especially after Kyle Tucker signed his record four-year, $240 million deal with the club – talks of a salary cap have swirled.—
Maury Brown,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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A number of foreign correspondents posted messages Monday as speculation swirled that the international coverage will bear a substantial amount of cuts.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Minnesota swung that deal for Dillingham as a creative way to get around the team-building restrictions of the aprons.—
Bryan Toporek,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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As shippers frontloaded their goods to get ahead of import taxes, cargo volumes swung high and low.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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City records going back to 2017, released to The Bee, in August show Karl Lysinger’s problems with the city revolved initially around his refusal to buy its water.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
18 Nov. 2025
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Beyond just apartments, the conversation in many races revolved — and diverged — around candidates’ attitudes toward growth in general.—
Taylor O'Connor,
Kansas City Star,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Whirled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whirled. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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