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coil 1 (koil)
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n.
1.
a. A series of connected spirals or concentric rings formed by gathering or winding: a coil of rope; long coils of hair.
b. An individual spiral or ring within such a series.
2. A spiral pipe or series of spiral pipes, as in a radiator.
3. Electricity
a. A wound spiral of two or more turns of insulated wire, used to introduce inductance into a circuit.
b. Any of various devices of which such a spiral is the major component.
4. A roll of postage stamps prepared for use in a vending machine.
v. coiled, coil·ing, coils
v.tr.
1. To wind in concentric rings or spirals.
2. To wind into a shape resembling a coil.
v.intr.
1. To form concentric rings or spirals.
2. To move in a spiral course: black smoke coiling up into the sky.
[Probably from obsolete French coillir, to gather up, from Latin colligere; see COLLECT1.]
coiler n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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