spiral
[noun]
Synonyms:
- coil, corkscrew, helix, whorl
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- coiled, helical, whorled, winding

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English Thesaurus: turn, go around, revolve/rotate, spin, whirl, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. spi‧ral¹ /ˈspaɪərəl $ ˈspaɪr-/ noun [countable]
[Date: 1500-1600; Language: Medieval Latin; Origin: spiralis (adjective), from Latin spira 'coil']

1. a line in the form of a curve that winds around a central point, moving further away from the centre all the time

2. a process, usually a harmful one, in which something gradually but continuously gets worse or better
in/into a spiral
Unemployment rose and the city went into a spiral of decline.
downward/upward spiral
The company is in a downward spiral.

3. inflationary spiral a situation in which wages and prices rise continuously because the level of inflation is high
—spiral adjective

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. spiral² verb (past tense and past participle spiralled, present participle spiralling British English, spiraled, spiraling American English) [intransitive]

1. [always + adverb/preposition] to move in a continuous curve that gets nearer to or further from its central point as it goes round
spiral to/around etc
The damaged plane spiralled to the ground.

2. if a situation spirals, it gets worse, more violent etc in a way that cannot be controlled:
Crime has spiraled out of control.

3. if debt or the cost of something spirals, it increases quickly in a way that cannot be controlled Synonym : escalate
—spiralling British English
— spiraling American English adjective:
the spiralling cost of legal services

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

spiral
noun
ADJ. destructive, vicious | downward, upward | inflationary, wage-price
VERB + SPIRAL halt, stop
PREP. ~ of to halt the vicious downward spiral of drug abuse

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

turn to move around a central or fixed point:
The wheels of the train began to turn.
go around (also go round British English) to turn around a central point. Go around is a little more informal than turn and is very common in everyday English:
When the fan goes around, the warm air is pushed back downwards.
revolve/rotate to turn around and around a central point. Rotate and revolve are more formal than turn and sound more technical:
The Earth rotates on its axis once every twenty-four hours.
The stage revolves at various points during the performance.
spin to turn around many times very quickly:
The ice skater began to spin faster and faster.
whirl /wɜːl $ wɜːrl/ to spin around extremely quickly, often in a powerful or uncontrolled way:
The blades of the helicopter whirled overhead.
twirl (around) to spin around quickly, especially as part of a dance or performance:
The couples were twirling around on the dance floor.
swirl (around) to move around quickly in a circular movement, especially when the movement goes outwards or upwards from the center:
Her white skirt swirled around her legs as she danced.
The leaves began to swirl around.
spiral to move in a continuous curve that gets nearer to or further from its central point as it goes around:
The smoke spiralled toward the ceiling.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲