spiral

From Middle French spirale, from Medieval Latin spiralis, from Latin spīra, from Ancient Greek σπεῖρα (speîra, “wreath, coil, twist”).

• (Received Pronunciation, General American, Canada, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈspaɪɹəl/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈspɑɪɹəl/
• Rhymes: -aɪɹəl

spiral (plural spirals)

1. (geometry) A curve that is the locus of a point that rotates about a fixed point while continuously increasing its distance from that point.
2. (informal) A helix.
3. A self-sustaining process with a lot of momentum involved, so it is difficult to accelerate or stop it at once.
   • 2015, Jane Ward, Not Gay, New York University Press, →ISBN, page xi:

     My beloved friends and family who sustained and grounded me as I fell into the rabbit hole of this project or down the spiral of new parenthood.

4. (rail transport) A section of track that forms a circle and crosses over itself, used for gaining height in mountainous territory.

spiral (not comparable)

1. Helical, like a spiral.
   • 1877, H. F. Blandford, Indian Meteorologist's Vade-mecum, page 140:

     The formation of tornados and water-spouts is very probably identical with that of dust-storms and "devils," viz., a sudden disturbance of the vertical equilibrium of the atmosphere, where by an upward rush of air is generated, which rapidly becomes spiral.

spiral (third-person singular simple present spirals, present participle (US) spiraling or (UK) spiralling, simple past and past participle (US) spiraled or (UK) spiralled)

1. (intransitive) To move along the path of a spiral or helix.

   The falling leaves spiralled down from the tree.

2. (transitive) To cause something to spiral.

   You need to learn how to spiral a ball.

3. (figuratively, intransitive) To increase continually.

   Her debts were spiralling out of control.

• Category:spirals on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons

• Aprils, Plairs, prials

From French spiral.

• Hyphenation: spi‧ral

spiral

1. spiral

• “spiral”, in Luğatçıq (in Russian)

spiral c (singular definite spiralen, plural indefinite spiraler)

1. spiral
2. coil (contraceptive device)

• “spiral” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “spiral” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Learned borrowing from Medieval Latin spīrālis. By surface analysis, spire +‎ -al.

• IPA^(key): /spi.ʁal/

• Audio:

  (file)

spiral (feminine spirale, masculine plural spiraux, feminine plural spirales)

1. spiral

spiral m (plural spiraux)

1. spiral

• “spiral”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Borrowed from Dutch spiraal (“spiral”), from French spirale, from Medieval Latin spiralis, from Latin spira, from Ancient Greek σπεῖρα (speîra, “wreath, coil, twist”).

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈspiral/ [ˈspi.ral]
• Rhymes: -iral
• Syllabification: spi‧ral

spiral (plural spiral-spiral)

1. (geometry) spiral; a kind of curve

   Synonym: pilin

2. (figurative) spiral; a self-sustaining process with a lot of momentum involved, so it is difficult to accelerate or stop it at once
3. (colloquial) intrauterine device, coil; a contraceptive device consisting of a spiral or similar shape

   Synonym: alat kontrasepsi dalam rahim

spiral (comparative lebih spiral, superlative paling spiral)

1. spiral, helical

   Synonyms: pilin, berpilin

• “spiral” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

• (Kautokeino) IPA^(key): /ˈspiral/

spiral

1. hip

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

• Koponen, Eino, Ruppel, Klaas, Aapala, Kirsti, editors (2002–2008), Álgu database: Etymological database of the Saami languages‎^[1], Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland

From Medieval Latin spiralis, from Latin spira.

spiral m (definite singular spiralen, indefinite plural spiraler, definite plural spiralene)

1. a spiral, coil
2. a coil (contraceptive device)

• spiralfjær
• spiraltrapp

• “spiral” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From Medieval Latin spiralis, from Latin spira.

spiral m (definite singular spiralen, indefinite plural spiralar, definite plural spiralane)

1. a spiral, coil
2. a coil (contraceptive device)

• spiraltrapp

• “spiral” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Borrowed from French spiral.

spiral m or n (feminine singular spirală, masculine plural spirali, feminine and neuter plural spirale)

1. spiral

• “spiral”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2025

• IPA^(key): /spɪˈrɑːl/

spiral c

1. a spiral
2. an intrauterine device, a coil (contraceptive device)

• myggspiral (“mosquito repellent spiral”)
• spiraltrappa (“spiral staircase”)

• dagen efter-piller (“morning-after pill”)
• kondom (“condom”)
• p-
• p-piller (“oral contraceptive pill”)
• preventivmedel (“contraceptive”)

• spiral in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• spiral in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• spiral in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

• pilars, slipar