Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

whorl

 - 6 dictionary results

whorl

  [hwurl, hwawrl, wurl, wawrl]
Use whorl in a Sentence
–noun
1. a circular arrangement of like parts, as leaves or flowers, around a point on an axis; verticil.
2. one of the turns or volutions of a spiral shell.
3. anything shaped like a coil.
4. one of the central ridges of a fingerprint, forming at least one complete circle.
5. Textiles. a flywheel or pulley, as for a spindle.
Origin:
1425–75; late ME whorle, whorvil, wharwyl, OE hwyrfel, equiv. to hweorfa whorl of a spindle + -el n. suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To whorl
whorl   (hwôrl, wôrl, hwûrl, wûrl)   


(click for larger image in new window)
n.  

  1. A form that coils or spirals; a curl or swirl: spread the icing in peaks and whorls.

  2. Botany An arrangement of three or more leaves, petals, or other organs radiating from a single node.

  3. Zoology A single turn or volution of a spiral shell.

  4. One of the circular ridges or convolutions of a fingerprint.

  5. Architecture An ornamental device, as in stonework or weaving, consisting of stylized vine leaves and tendrils.

  6. A small flywheel that regulates the speed of a spinning wheel.


[Middle English whorle, alteration of whirle, whirl, from whirlen, to whirl; see whirl.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

whorl 
c.1460, "flywheel or pulley on a spindle," perhaps an alteration of whirl. Meaning "circle of leaves or flowers round a stem of a plant" is first recorded 1551. Of seashells or other spiral structures, from 1828.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: whorl
Pronunciation: 'hwor(-&)l, 'wor(-&)l, '(h)w&r(-&)l
Function: noun
: a fingerprint in which the central papillary ridges turnthrough at least one complete turn
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

whorl (wôrl, wûrl)
n.

  1. A form that coils or spirals; a curl or swirl.

  2. A turn of the cochlea or of the ethmoidal crest.

  3. An area of hair growing in a radial manner.

  4. One of the circular ridges or convolutions of a fingerprint.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Science Dictionary
whorl   (hwôrl, wôrl, hwûrl, wûrl)  Pronunciation Key 

  1. An arrangement of three or more appendages radiating in a circular or spiral arrangement from a point on a plant, as leaves around the node of a stem. The sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels of angiosperms form four separate whorls within a complete flower.

  2. A single turn of a spiral shell of a mollusk.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see whorl on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way