WINDING


Meaning of WINDING in English

I. ˈwīndiŋ, -dēŋ noun

( -s )

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English windung, something twined or plaited, a hurdle, from windan to wind + -ung -ing

1.

a.

(1) : the material (as wire or rope) that is wound or coiled about an object (as an armature)

(2) : a single turn of the wound material

b. chiefly dialect : a pliable rod : withy

2.

a. : the action of coiling, twining, or twisting a pliable material about an object or about itself

the winding of thread on a spool

silk winding

b. : the manner of winding pliable material about an object — see series winding , shunt winding

3.

a. : a curved or sinuous course, passage, or line

knows all the windings of the cave — A.A.Grace

b.

(1) : movement or progress in a curve or a series of curves

following the windings of the creek until it led us far back into the hills — Mary S. Broome

(2) : a sinuous movement in conduct or thought : a devious or tortuous way or method — usually used in plural

all the windings of this sordid intrigue — J.W.Beach

4.

a. : the act or action of hoisting or pulling by means of a mechanism that winds (as a winch)

b. : the act or action of tightening a spring or other mechanism (as in a clock or watch) by turning a key, stem, or screw

5. : the state, quality, or fact of being twisted or warped out of a plane

drove wooden piles that would stay out of winding

6. : a defective gait of a horse in which one foreleg is twisted in front of and around the other

II. adjective

Etymology: from present participle of wind (IV)

1. : marked by winding: as

a. : having a pronounced curve

the rough winding stairs of the medieval fortress — Claudia Cassidy

especially : spiral

b. : having a course that winds

a winding road

c. : digressive , rambling

the conclusion of the long and winding stories — Sir Walter Scott

2. obsolete : tricky , deceitful , wily

3. : staggering , reeling

a kick that sent him winding — G.S.Perry

• wind·ing·ly adverb

• wind·ing·ness noun -es

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.